Soul Survivor
by Lady Starwing
Summary: [P3p Universe Alteration] Hamuko likes Bad Apple, she's the sister of the world's first murderer, and her COMP summons Personas. Tartarus and the Dark Hour won't know what hit them. (Pairings undecided at the moment. Crossover with Devil Survivor one with various other SMT elements. Rating may be subject to change later on.)
1. Eternal Night Vignette

_(April 7__th__, Late Night, 1999)  
The Full Moon outside the window was bright that night, the young girl in the backseat of the car giggling as she watched the stars blur by outside. "It's my birthday~ it's my birthday~" Singing happily to herself, bright amber eyes turned to the teenager who sat next to her. "Naoya-nii, lookit the moon! It's so big out~! Do you think the moon rabbits are out playing?" She laughed when the fourteen-year-old turned to her, clapping her hands together. _

"_Hamuko, you should be sleeping." The soft chuckle came from the driver's seat, a raven-haired man driving the car. A pair of amber eyes nearly identical to the girl's looked in the rear view mirror. "You'll wake up Hiro if you keep it up, and I told my sister I'd get him back to her asleep. And your mother's asleep too; you know she's a bear if you wake her up before the sun is near the middle of the sky." A soft glance at the woman in a police uniform sleeping in the passenger seat later, and the girl – Hamuko – quieted a bit. _

"_Sorry Poppa …" Giggling quietly, she hugged the plush she had been given for her birthday – a large black cat with a white ear and silver eyes– and looked at the far side of the car. Her blue-haired cousin slept on, a large pair of headphones covering his ears. "Hi-tan doesn't hear me anyway with those on …" _

"_Still, Hamuko, quiet down for now." Hearing her older brother talk, Hamuko looked up. Naoya's red eyes were somewhere between amused and exasperated, but his voice was still gentle. "Besides, in about a minute, it won't be your birthday anymore." Showing his younger sister the watch he was wearing, Naoya gave her a small smile as she saw it was less than a minute until midnight. "And you start school tomorrow." _

"_I know, I know~" Hamuko pouted. "But I said I was gonna stay up until midnight on my birthday this year." Nodding her head, she gave her brother a triumphant smirk. "And I'm doing so!" _

"… _You'll crash the moment the clock hits fifteen minutes past midnight, I know you will." Naoya chuckled and shook his head, their father echoing the soft noise. Hamuko gave a stubborn 'hmph' and turned to look out the window, still hugging her cat plush. _

_A flash of pale blue and black at the corner of her eye made Hamuko turn to get a better look, just as her father let out an alarmed shout and slammed on the car's brakes as the world broke around them …  
_

* * *

(April 6th, Late Night, 2009)

It was nearly midnight, the passengers on the train heading towards Iwatodai Station either asleep or fidgeting, waiting to get off at the next stop. There had been several delays, and the miserable weather wasn't helping anyone's moods. Barely half an hour ago, a stewardess had told a group of teenagers to either turn off their music or to wear headphones to stop disturbing everyone else. So when the bullet train finally reached Iwatodai Station, everyone piled out at a fast pace. Those that had umbrellas opened them up as they headed out, not wanting the rain to hit them.

Even then, the girl who walked out of the last car was an oddity.

"_Nagareteku toki no naka de demo kedarusa ga hora guruguru mawatte. Watashi kara hanareru kokoro mo mienaiwa sou shiranai~?"_ Singing quietly, the girl twirled a parasol over her left shoulder, the gold and orange silk decorated with brilliant red pomegranate flowers. She dressed in colors to match the parasol; a light orange shirt over a yellow turtleneck, with a pair of black pants tucked into brown knee high boots. A backpack hung from one shoulder and a scarf wound around her neck, hiding the lanyard that held an MP3 player, the butterfly-stylized headphones clipped over the girl's ears.

"_Jibun kara ugoku koto mo naku toki no sukima ni nagasare tsuzukete. Shiranai wa mawari no koto nado watashi wa watashi sore dake~"_ Clearly singing along with what she was listening to, the girl pulled out a piece of paper from her pockets. It was a small map of the northern part of town, showing her where she would be staying for the year. Nodding when she realized that it was nearby, she kept walking. _"Yume miteru? Nani mo mitenai? Kataru mo muda na jibun no kotoba- _! Oh, dammit." Scowling, the girl stopped as the world froze, and her music cut off.

Pouting, Tsukio Hamuko took off her headphones and hung them off of her shoulders. "Crap, I forgot it was almost midnight …" Shifting her pack again, she held the parasol directly over her as the rain water turned into droplets of blood. "Good thing the dorm's nearby." Walking along, she ignored the sudden appearance of tall coffins around her as the surroundings were slowly washed over with a harsh lighting, ruining the boundaries of light and shadow into fuzzy lines. "I'm really glad I sent most of my stuff ahead of me; it would be dangerous to haul it all around now."

Keeping to herself, Hamuko shifted her parasol back to her shoulder when the rain stopped. "Hmm … nearly there." Smiling, she brushed her auburn bangs out of her face, red eyes keeping watch of her surroundings. "And nothing's attacked yet. That's good." Nodding, she smiled and kept walking, dodging around puddles of blood and more coffins. At one point, she almost stopped, thinking she had spotted a young boy walking around, but he was gone when she took another look.

Finally, she stopped outside of a tall building and looked up. It was western style – different from the traditional home her aunt and uncle owned – and several stories high. Like the rest of the block, it had no power, and the lack of lighting made it seem far more ominous than it was already. Pulling out the map she had on hand, Hamuko double-checked the address. It was indeed correct, and she should probably get out of the streets before something attacked.

Closing her parasol, she sighed and stepped inside, grateful that the large oak doors weren't locked. Letting them click shut behind her, she found herself thanking whoever had left the curtains for the windows open; if they had been shut, the room would have been pitch black. From what she could make out, she was standing in the fairway of a living room, a sign-in desk to her left. Several books and a door rested on the far wall behind the desk, and a sheet of papers with a pen next to it gave itself away as a log book.

To her right was the living room itself. A pair of sofas sat across from one another, a fancy glass coffee table between them. A rather plush loveseat was at the far end, with a plainer lounge chair taking the fourth edge of the table and sitting closest to Hamuko. A television was tucked in the corner of a glass wall that appeared to act as a glass separator, but what was on the other side of it, Hamuko couldn't tell.

"You're late." The voice made Hamuko turn to look at the sign-in desk, eyes wide in shock. Standing behind the counter was a ten-year-old boy in a pair of striped pyjamas, his bright blue eyes offset by raven black hair. A small mole rested on his left cheek, and he was giving Hamuko a coy smile as she lowered the parasol she was holding in both hands. "It's okay, I won't hurt you."

"… Who are you…?" Hamuko lowered the parasol a bit, not wanting to be attacked. While the boy said _he _wouldn't attack her, she wasn't going to let her guard down. There could still be something else wandering around this building.

"I am always with you." The boy evaded the question, and held up a small red pamphlet. "But since you are here now, we mustn't waste more time. Please sign here …"

"What is it? A dorm contract?" even more suspicious, Hamuko glanced around once more. When the boy just continued to smile, Hamuko sighed and shook her head. "I guess I might as well … … Eh? 'I chooseth this path of my own free will. I take full responsibility of my actions henceforth.' Well, if it is a dorm contract, it's an oddly worded one." Sighing, Hamuko signed the paper with the pen next to the logbook. Once she was done, the book closed of its own accord, making her eyes widen.

Smiling, the boy picked it up. "Don't worry, my dearest … If you are ever in any danger, I promise, you will have aid …" Chuckling, he nodded his head. "Just remember … Time waits for no one, and you cannot escape it. You can't close your eyes and cover your ears to make it go away …" As he spoke, he slowly vanished, the contract going with him.

Fully on edge now, Hamuko held her parasol up again. Taking a slow step backwards, she began to make her way for the lounge area nearby. She'd have things to hide behind over there, if all else failed.

"…!? Who's there!?" A girl's voice made Hamuko whip around, looking at the way that she assumed lead to the stairs. Standing a couple steps away from her was a girl about her age in a bright pink cardigan, which was probably the only reason Hamuko could see her so well. Light brown hair was cut to her shoulders and stylized into a swoop, a white choker with a heart on it around her neck. A charcoal skirt that probably gave many a panty shot hung around the girl's waist and hips, a pair of knee-high black socks over her legs. Wide brown eyes were locked on Hamuko, not looking away as the pink-haired girl got a better grip on her parasol. "!? How're you-? Don't tell me …"

Scowling, the other girl went for what had to be a gun strapped to her thigh. Not thinking, Hamuko lunged, bringing the butt of her parasol around to ram into the other girl's gut.

"Hold!" the commanding female voice cut through the air, making the brunet freeze in surprise as Hamuko forced her body to stop, the parasol an inch away from ramming into the other girl at best. As both turned to look at the stairs, a third girl darted downstairs, her white blouse and blood red hair stark against the shadows around them. A scarlet ribbon was around her neck, and she wore a similar charcoal skirt to the brunet girl's, save for down to her knees instead of mid-thigh, and her black boots went up a bit under the skirt.

Before either Hamuko or her attacker could say anything, however, the world shifted again.

"_**Kanashimu nante tsukareru dake yo nani mo kanjizu-" **_Hearing her music start up again, Hamuko reached up to her MP3 player to turn it off, sighing in relief in tandem with the brunet girl. Lowering her parasol fully, Hamuko looked up as the redhead came to stand next to the brunet. Now that it was calmer, she could see that they both wore a scarlet armband around their left arms.

"You arrived awful late." The redhead started talking, her voice polite and oddly warm at the same time. "I was worried that you wouldn't arrive until tomorrow morning." The brunet girl looked at the redhead in confusion.

"… Senpai? What are you talking about?" Hamuko felt her eyebrow twitch a bit at that. She was right there; why was the brunet talking like she was a ghost?

The redhead gave the brunet an annoyed look, as if to say 'will you let me finish talking?', and nodded back at Hamuko. "I heard that the trains had gotten into some delays, Tsukio-san. If I had been given proper warning, I would have made sure someone would have been at the station to escort you."

Hamuko's brain registered who the redhead was, and she gave a small smile and a polite bow. "Ah, it's okay, Kirijo-san. I didn't have a problem getting here from the station on my own. I'm glad I sent my stuff ahead of time though." Seeing the brunet looking even more confused than before, Hamuko decided to just introduce herself; it seemed like the other girl wasn't going to say anything unless prompted. "Hello there. I'm Tsukio Hamuko; I just transferred here, but I'll be going to Gekkoukan High School."

"Oh!" Breaking out of her stupor, the brunet girl bowed back. "I'm Takeba Yukari, a second year at Gekkoukan High. Uh …" Looking a touch awkward again, she looked at the redhead. "Mitsuru-senpai, how do you and Tsukio-san know one another?" The redhead, Mitsuru, brushed some of her wavy hair back behind her shoulder.

"I paid attention to her name on the luggage that arrived earlier today, Takeba."

"… Oh." Yukari's face went faint pink, and Hamuko took some pity on her.

"Well, my older brother also did some computer repairs for the Kirijo group a few years back, and I glimpsed Kirijo-san once or twice." Giving a shy smile, Hamuko looked around. "… It's awful empty in here."

"It _is_ past midnight." Mitsuru let a soft chuckle enter her voice. "And this dorm isn't one of the more popular ones. It's farther away from the campus, and it being co-ed complicates things a bit."

Yukari seemed a bit wary of something, but she didn't deny what the older girl was saying. "… What year will you be going into, Hamuko-san?" Offering Hamuko a small smile, she folded her hands behind her back. Sensing the awkward change in topic, Hamuko decided to just roll with it, if only to get rid of some of the building tension.

"I'll be a second year, like you. I was homeschooled until this year. I certainly wasn't expecting to wind up here of all places." Giggling, she had to fight back a small yawn. "But … as much as I would like to socialize …"

"Yes, we should all probably get some sleep." Mitsuru nodded as well, pulling out a small silver key from her skirt's pocket. "Tsukio, this is the key to your room. Please don't lose it." When Hamuko took the key and pocketed it, Mitsuru nodded. "Come on. The girl's have their rooms on the third floor."

"Who's on the second then?" Curious, Hamuko looked around as they headed for the stairs.

"That is the boy's floor, even if there's only two here currently." Mitsuru glanced up the stairs as the three girls began climbing. "They're prohibited from entering the girl's rooms on the third floor, and the reverse applies to us." Stopping at the second floor, Mitsuru gestured at the dark hallway. "Each floor has its own bathrooms as well, apart from those on the first and fourth floors. The lounge and landings are free for everyone to use though."

"I've barely seen either of the male senpai." Yukari murmured under her breath as Mitsuru headed up the next set of stairs. Looking at Hamuko, she shrugged. "They're both keep to themselves an awful lot, and sometimes I wonder if one of them is actually a ghost I see him so little …" Shaking her head, the brunet smiled at Hamuko. "But they're both nice though, if you ever get a chance to talk with them. … And why do you still have your parasol?"

Hamuko blinked, having forgotten she was carrying the thing. "I'd … be more comfortable with it on me, actually." Giving a half smile, she darted up the stairs to catch up with Mitsuru, figuring the redhead would be cross if she was kept waiting. Yukari let out a surprised noise and sped up to follow the other two, a step behind them as they reached the third floor landing.

The landing was a bit different, with a few small tables and chairs instead of a set of sofas around a low table from the second floor. The lights were also dimmed, most likely due to the time, casting everything in a pale yellow glow. "Your room is on the end of the hallway." Mitsuru nodded, pointing out the bathrooms that occupied the hallway on the opposite side of the stairs. "Your possessions are waiting for you, but I took the liberty of unpacking your pyjamas for you."

"Ah, thanks. I didn't want to dig through a bunch of boxes to find Pjs." Smiling, Hamuko watched Yukari retreat into her room with a quiet 'goodnight'. "She seems … really high strung …"

"She's on the archery team. They have a rather rigorous training schedule, so she's probably tired." Mitsuru brushed her bangs out of her face for a second as she spoke, as if rubbing at her forehead. "And I imagine you're tired after such a long train ride to get here. Coming all the way from the outskirts of Tokyo …"

"Ah, the trains themselves were fine. It was the rail issues that were frustrating." Shaking her head and smiling, Hamuko yawned again. "But bed is calling me, Mitsuru-senpai … I guess I'll see you tomorrow at some point?" Mitsuru chuckled and nodded.

"There is dinner served here at about eight in the evening, if you wish to have some." Nodding again, the redhaired girl walked towards the closest room. "It's free of charge and optional, but I'd recommend trying it at least once." Chuckling a bit at Hamuko's small smile, Mitsuru went into her room with a quiet goodnight. Alone in the hall, Hamuko sighed quietly and entered her room.

It was simple, the walls a soft peach color. A small red button – a fire alarm, Hamuko assumed – rested next to the door, over a small miniature fridge. A sink sat next to it, with a mirror hanging over it. The desk was covered with boxes, sitting across the room from the open wardrobe. Her uniform was hanging up, but the rest of it was empty. 'Guess I'll be unpacking tomorrow …'

Looking at her bed, Hamuko smiled. Not only were her pjs out on the bed, but so was her cat plush with the one white ear. He was plopped out on top of her pillows, silver eyes peering at the wall. Resting her parasol against the wall by her bed, Hamuko sat down and started hugging him, face buried in the fluff. "Ah, Seraph, I'm so tired but I can't sleep yet …" Not knowing why she still talked to the plush, the pink-haired girl looked out the window. "Who the hell was that boy? And what did he mean by the fact that he's always with me? Why do I have a little kid stalking me?"

_**Muda na jikan ni mirai wa aru no?  
Konna tokoro ni watashi wa iru no?**_

Jumping a foot out of her skin at the sound of her phone going off, Hamuko pulled it out of her pocket. "W – who the heck-?! Oh!" Recognizing the number, she answered the call. "Onii-chan, you scared me!"

"_Good; that means you're still alive." _Hamuko rolled her eyes at her brother's statement. She could almost see her brother now; instead of sleeping like most normal people, the young man would be sitting up on his futon, laptop nearby. _"Did you reach your dorm? I heard there was bad weather on the way down there." _

"Don't worry, Naoya, I'm fine." Smiling as she reclined against the headboard with the cat in her lap, she smiled a bit. "So how're you holding up now that I've left the apartment? Aunt and Uncle Hijiri were both shocked you moved out so suddenly … Any real reason?"

"_I'm twenty-three. That's why."_ Naoya's deadpan made Hamuko laugh more. The albino was probably smirking himself, if only in amusement at his little sister's giggles. _"But yes, you'll be starting class tomorrow. Shouldn't you be asleep?"_

"Can I at least open up my gift, Naoya?" pouting, Hamuko pulled the small box out of the bag she had on her back. "It's been taunting me the entire train ride here, and Atusro-kun teasing me about it at the station didn't help at all."

"_That boy is too vocal for his own good at times. I'm shocked he didn't tell you what it was." _Naoya had facepalmed; Hamuko heard the soft smack noise over the phone. _"Sometimes I wonder why Hiiro keeps him around …" _

"And yet you're teaching him how to program and hack anyway, Naoya. You like having a lackey to work with." Hamuko teased, giggling as she opened the box. Seeing what was inside, she blinked and pulled it out. "Hmm? A homebrewed COMP?" She looked the gaming system over in confusion, but smiled when she saw the bright orange casing and the rather distinct winged moon she always doodled on her papers on top of the system in gold and white. "I know I said I needed a new one, but you didn't have to homebrew it; I still love it though."

"_You have an odd way of saying 'thank you', little sister."_ Naoya was shaking his head; Hamuko knew it_. "But I had a feeling you'll need it in the long run …"_ not liking how cryptic that sentence was, Hamuko scowled and turned the COMP on.

The normal COMP screen flashed on like it did with the storebought models, before fading to a swallowtail butterfly themed background with a slot for her handle and password to be inserted. "Hehe, you really wanted to make sure nobody could hack into this easily, did you Naoya?" Grinning at her brother's muttering of 'wanting to keep her privacy safe', Hamuko entered her handle and password. The screen in response turned to a pale pink screen, still with the butterflies on it. "Well, there's the chat place, the download, the slots for the games, the alarm clock … Hm?" Looking at the bottom left hand corner, Hamuko stared. "Why is one of the butterflies in the background a different color?"

"_You will see … Now, you should get to bed. Sleep well and have a good first day of class_." Stopping any of Hamuko's attempted questions, Naoya hung up.

Huffing a bit, Hamuko stowed her phone away before focusing on the off-color butterfly. Instead of being pink, it was a faint gold color, and seemed to glow. "..? What happens if I …?" Curious, Hamuko pulled out the stylus and tapped the butterfly.

Nothing happened.

"… Huh. Maybe it's just the lighting … I am pretty tired." Yawning, Hamuko turned the system off and put it on her bedside table. "C'mon, Seraph, nighttime." Changing into her pjs, she grabbed the plush again and slipped under the covers. "Tomorrow's a big day after all."

* * *

_**Starwing's Notes: **Hey look, I'm back with a new multichapter fic. Guiding Light's currently being worked into a webcoming that will be hosted on my deviantart and a tumblr sideblog, for those who will ask about it. I'll update you guys regularly here, and I'll let you know when everything's up and ready to go. _

_Anyway, onto this story itself! It's a retelling of Persona 3 Portable, obviously, but having Hamuko as a relative to Naoya of Devil Survivor 1 fame. The backstories just fit together well, and I thought it would be a fun change to bring to the story. I know there's probably going to be someone asking why her hair is pink instead of brunet/auburn, and that was mainly just me finding her original concept art and finding it absolutely adorable. So pink-haired Hamuko is a go~ _

_There'll be more changes starting next chapter, so I'll see you when that goes up!_


	2. Spring Lane

_(April 7th, Early Morning)_  
The sunlight crashing through her window was Hamuko's wake-up call the next morning. Groaning in irritation – she wondered if Kirijo had done this on purpose – she rolled over for a few moments to try and sleep longer. Hugging her cat plush close, she managed to find a comfortable position and was starting to drift off when she heard a knock on the door.

"Go 'way …" She mumbled, not wanting to get up.

"Hamuko-san, it's Yukari. Mitsuru-senpai asked me to wake you. You have to be out of here within thirty minutes if you hope to be at school on time." Hearing Yukari's voice on the other side of the door just made Hamuko groan more.

"Dun care." She muttered, pulling the comforter up over her head. Why the hell did it take a half-hour to get to school on time at seven in the morning?! Hamuko faintly heard Yukari sigh from the other side of the door.

"Sorry, I really don't want Mitsuru-senpai mad at me …" A rattling informed Hamuko that Yukari had a key to her room as well and was unlocking the door. Rolling over, she reached for the nearest thing to her bed, and managed to wrap her hand around it as Yukari opened the door. "Wake up!"

Hamuko responded by chucking the boot at her, sitting up in bed as she did so.

"Waaaaah!" Yukari ducked, eyes wide as her arms went over her head. "Don't DO that!" She huffed as she stood up, giving Hamuko a glare.

"Be grateful it wasn't one of the books I have back at home." Hamuko countered as she sat up fully, her hair a complete mess. She could feel Yukari staring at her in shock, and she gave her a blank look. "You going to leave so I can get dressed? I'm not getting dressed in front of an audience."

"O – oh! Right! Sorry, I'll just wait outside …" Yukari's face went red as she retreated to the hall, closing the door behind her. Mumbling to herself – and making a note to get that copy of her room key from Yukari at some point – Hamuko quickly changed out of her pjs and got dressed. The uniform was nice and comfortable – even if it was a weird top to latch – and the skirt came to her mid-thighs instead of super short like she had feared. The white undershirt was crisp and clean, and the small pin on the blazer seemed to indicate that she was in a certain year.

'I'll have to ask about that later …' Sighing, Hamuko grabbed her mp3 player and draped it over her neck, clipping the headphones onto the collar; she would need some music in her ears to wake her up fully. 'I'll do my hair on the train. No time to do anything fancy …' Sighing, she grabbed the COMP as an afterthought and pushed it into her pocket. 'Just in case …'

Grabbing her school bag as she ran a brush through her hair, she left the room, still tired. Yukari gave her a weak smile. "There's coffee downstai …" Eyes widening at how much longer Hamuko's hair was when let down, the brunet shook her head to finish her sentence. "Sorry, there's coffee downstairs."

"Good, I'll need it …" Yawning, Hamuko tossed the brush back into her room and began to walk downstairs, Yukari following her.

It was a fifteen minute walk to the train station, giving enough time for the coffee to cool down. As the two settled down, Hamuko sipping her coffee, Yukari gave a weak laugh. "You're really not a morning person, are you?"

"Nnope." Hamuko shook her hair. "That's why my older brother's the only one who dares to go ahead and wake me up at home. The one time I threw something at him, he grabbed it and threw it right back."

"I guess I should be glad I just got a boot." Yukari let out a light laugh.

"And I didn't aim for your head." Hamuko chuckled, putting her coffee down and grabbing her hip-length hair. "Now, for the fun part of my morning." Yukari looked at Hamuko's hair as she spoke, awed.

"I had no clue you had _that _much hair … I thought it just went down to your shoulders." She admitted, watching Hamuko pull out a box of hairpins and a scrunchie. Giving the brunet girl a wink, Hamuko began twisting and braiding the hair, managing to compress it into a relatively decent-sized, braided bun at the back of her head, still with some left to hang free over the bun.

Yukari's jaw hit the floor. "Dang … I don't think I've seen someone with that level of skill before …" Hamuko gave a shrug, drinking more coffee.

"I've been growing my hair out since I was nine. I've had plenty of time to practice." Chuckling, she pulled out her hairpins and pulled up the bangs on the left side of her face, the metal forming a sharp 'XXII' in white against her soft pink hair. Seeing the questioning look Yukari was giving her, she chuckled. "I like my hair long, is all. Let's me do a lot with it." Smiling softly as she took another sip of coffee, Hamuko's eyes softened. "That … and Mom liked playing with it when she was off duty. She said it helped calm her down from a day on the police force."

"Heh, sounds like you had some interesting parents." Yukari fell quiet after that, the two girls watching the monorail sail out of the station and hit the bridge. "Ah … my favorite part …" Smiling more, the brunet looked at Hamuko and laughed. "Sorry, this part where we're gliding over the ocean has always been something I enjoyed. You'll be able to see Gekkoukan when we round the curve.

Nodding, Hamuko watched, and blinked when the shining white building came into view. "Wow … even for a private school, that's a _large _building." She felt a twinge of nervousness creep into her. It would be so easy for her to get lost here … "What, does it have all the grades or something?" Yukari nodded.

"All the way up through college and some graduate school." Yukari nodded.

"All of them private?"

"All of them. Funded by the Kirijo group." A bit of bitterness seemed to sneak into Yukari's voice at that, but she hid it well. Hamuko gave a soft laugh.

"Yakuza family much?" She shook her head in amusement; it wouldn't shock her, from what little she knew of the family. Yukari's answering chuckle made her smile, and she shook her head. "Sorry if I seem kinda odd, but I've been homeschooled since I was in elementary school … And the schools in Tokyo are nowhere near this impressive."

"Really?" Yukari seemed genuinely surprised. "I hope this isn't too much for you …" Looking up as the train pulled into the station, she let out a soft noise. "Ah, here we go. It's a quick walk from here, so we'll get there with plenty of time for you to get to the faculty office. You ready?" She gave Hamuko a gentle smile as the other girl stood up.

"As ready as I'll ever be." More awake now, Hamuko threw away the empty coffee cup and smiled, back to her normal level of energy. "Let's go~!" Darting off, she heard Yukari shout in shock and jog to keep pace with her. The brunet lead her down a main strip, several other students joining them as they left dorms and homes along the road. Before long, the school came into view, and Hamuko gawped.

It was much more impressive than it had appeared from the train. A wrought iron gate marked the entrance to the main campus, a small pair of shuttles going in opposite directions at the gate; Hamuko assumed it was for the grade and primary school buildings. The high school itself appeared to be mainly made out of glass, and the other parts of the campus were glinting just as brightly in the distance. "… I guess the Seven Lucky Gods smiled on the Kirijo family for something."

"Electronics superpower, first and foremost." Yukari nodded, leading the way into the school building. "So the place is super high-tech as well."

"Shiny both inside and out, eh?" Hamuko smiled and shook her head. "Nothing I'm not used to, living with my big brother." Letting Yukari lead her through the building and to the entry hallway, she was surprised to see a good deal of students milling about and talking with one another. '… the warning bell hasn't even rung, I bet. Why did Yukari-san drag me all the way out here so ridiculously early?'

Her mental question was answered when a woman in a pantsuit approached her, carrying a set of files. "Ah, you're Tsukio Hamuko, correct?" she asked, smiling in relief when Hamuko nodded. "That's a relief; I heard that your train came in late yesterday evening, so I was a touch worried you would have overslept." Leading the pink haired girl towards the faculty office after giving Yukari a wave, the woman kept talking. "I'm Toriumi Isako, the composition teacher and your homeroom."

"It's nice to meet you, sensei." Hamuko smiled and gave a polite bow, dodging around a man in a samurai's kabuto and a blond boy with a very delicate looking fan. "But yeah, Yukari-san made sure I got up on time."

"That's good, that's good." Nodding, Toriumi pulled Hamuko into the office, some of her papers falling out. "Sorry if it seems odd, but I just wanted to double check a few things by you to make sure I got all the vital stuff correct. After that I'll have to introduce you to the rest of the class before the ceremony starts …"

Nodding as she looked over the paperwork – all of it with Naoya's typical signature and lack of care for formality, Hamuko looked up. "Ceremony?"

"The welcome ceremony; the principal greets all the students in the building, but mostly I think it's because he likes to hear himself talk." Toriumi smirked at that, nodding as she read over Hamuko's file. A flinch crossed her face, telling Hamuko she'd found the pages discussing the fate of her parents. "Wow … and your older brother's been homeschooling you ever since?"

"Him and my aunt and uncle who took us in." Hamuko nodded, groaning a bit mentally at the mention of the principal apparently being a windbag. "But yeah, everything checks out, sensei." Standing up, the pink-haired girl smiled at her teacher, only to yip a bit when a hand gripped onto her ponytail.

"Pink? Young lady, I know it's in style for hair bleaching, but this is a touch over the top." A man's voice, rich with distaste, hit Hamuko's ears as she jerked her head forward and turned around. It was a middle-aged man, and his attitude was one that made Hamuko want to hit him upside the head with something. "You look like something out of a video game."

"It's natural." Hamuko shrugged. "If you think I'm bad my older brother would make you do a double take. Then again he's albino, so I guess being pale just runs in our family." Smiling when she saw how uncomfortable the comment had made the man, she just gave a polite bow. "I can't wait to see what classes you're teaching, sensei."

Thankfully, the man seemed to miss the rich sarcasm in her voice, and left soon afterword while shooting Toriumi a glare. A quick glance showed that the woman had been holding in laughter, prompting a small smile from Hamuko as Toriumi let a few giggles escape. "We should hurry up before the ceremony starts, Tsukio-san." The teacher nodded, straightening up and getting her papers in order. "But just to give you fair warning, he'll probably go on and on for a while."

Hamuko mentally groaned at that, and was now very glad she had brought her COMP along with her.

* * *

_(Lunchtime)_  
'Yeah … bringing the COMP along was definitely a smart idea.' Groaning as she thought that, Hamuko shook her head and sat up a bit as the lunch bell rang. The ceremony had dragged on for what felt like hours, and the introduction classes she had had in the past couple of hours had been all snoozers. She would be lying if she didn't say she'd played her games throughout most of the ceremony. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a good-sized bento when she heard her COMP let out a faint dinging noise. 'eh? Someone else here has a COMP turned on?'

Lifting her head, Hamuko looked around and eventually spotted the boy a few seats in front of her. he'd been sleeping through most of the classes – kind of ballsy with him being in the second-most forward row – but now he seemed to be wide awake, and clearly muttering at whatever game he was playing. Smiling a bit, Hamuko pulled out her COMP and opened the quick chat as she broke open her bento.

_**-Watcha playing there?**_

Smiling as she put the COMP down to eat, Hamuko lifted her head and bit back a laugh as the boy looked around in confusion, trying to figure out who had sent the message. A few moments later, the pink-haired girl heard her COMP beep again as she got a reply.

_**-… Pocket Monsters Diamond. Who is this?**_

Grinning at the mention of Pocket Monsters – she loved that silly game – Hamuko giggled as she typed out her response.

_**-Look behind you, silly; the girl with the bento. I have Platinum if you wanna trade at some point~**_

It took a few minutes for the boy to look up again, blinking when he spotted Hamuko. Smiling, she waved, halfway done with her lunch as the boy grinned and got up, trotting over to her. "Hehe, leave it to the new girl to be the one who hits me up, eh?" HE teased, sitting down on the desk in front of her. "I'm Iori Junpei, by the way. Nice to meet ya."

"Tsukio Hamuko." Smiling as she pushed the bento to one side, she offered her hand. "Nice to meet you too." Junpei grinned and took the offered hand, shaking it.

"Tsukio, eh? Well that makes you Luna-tan, then!" Junpei grinned, dark grey eyes dancing in amusement. He was tall and lanky, dark hair cropped short and kept under a baseball cap. He seemed to have a goatee forming over his chin, and a silver chain with a pair of dogtags hung around his neck. "So it must feel weird, being a new kid in school; I know that myself." He laughed. "I transferred here in eighth grade. I was actually gonna introduce myself to you after school and see how you were doing."

"Well, I guess you don't have to wait then, eh?" Hamuko giggled, finishing her bento and storing it away. "Well, did we want to do that trade I mentioned?"

"Yeah, su- holy … is that thing homebrewed?" Junpei looked at the pale orange COMP, eyebrows arching. "Dude, that thing's _slick." _

Smiling at the friendly boy, Hamuko showed Junpei what was on the screen of the COMP. "Yup, completely homebrewed. My brother made it; he's good at hacking and such, so he made it for my birthday … which is today …" Blushing a bit in embarrassment, Hamuko ignored Junpei's laugh until he hugged her.

"Hey, I'll take ya somewhere for your birthday then, Luna-tan!" The silly grin on his face was infectious, and Hamuko smiled back, giggling a bit at the nickname he'd given her. "There's a ramen place, several fast-food joints, a karaoke bar …"

"Ooo! Karaoke!" Hamuko's face lit up. "That sounds good!"

"Hehe, that'll be fun." Grinning, Junpei pulled up a chair, sitting into it and talking to Hamuko. Happy to talk back, Hamuko smiled and kept talking, barely glancing up when Yukari came back into the classroom and walked over.

"Ugh, Junpei, why are you bothering Hamuko-san?" The brunet girl seemed agitated by the capped boy's presence, but Hamuko couldn't tell why. As it was, Junpei rolled his eyes while Yukari couldn't see.

"I wasn't bugging her, Yuka-tan!" Hamuko bit back a giggle at the nickname – Junpei really was too friendly sometimes – and from seeing how agitated it seemed to make Yukari. "I was just being friendly!" Now starting to act silly, Junpei threw his arm over Hamuko's shoulder. "I mean, c'mon! A guy can't be nice to the new kid?"

"He's really just being a nice guy, Yukari-san." Hamuko smiled, not minding the hug. "Where have you been?" The subject change had been sudden, but Hamuko had a sinking feeling Yukari would try to hit her new friend if she didn't interfere soon. Yukari blinked, but didn't think too much of it as she gave a shrug.

"I had to do something for one of the teachers, and then had lunch with some of my friends." Trying to give the other girl a smile, Yukari brushed her hair behind her ear. "I hope it hasn't been too crazy for you."

"Nope!" Hamuko saw by the way Yukari chuckled that the chirpy tone was what the other girl wanted to hear. "Some of the teachers are really boring though … Although I do find it funny all three of us got in the same class."

"Yeah, Yuka-tan." Junpei was scratching his head now as well, clearly thinking. "Ya think it was planned out or something?"

"Tch, who would have anything to gain from sticking us in class with you?" Yukari's voice was rich with sarcasm.

"Hey!"

"Well I'm glad to have two friends in a classroom with me." Hamuko cut them both off, smiling. It seemed to catch them both off guard, and they looked at the pink-haired girl in confusion as she smiled brighter. "What?"

"You really are one of a kind …" Yukari sighed and shook her head. Junpei just grinned.

"Hey, Yuka-tan, care to join us for karaoke after school?" the boy offered. Yukari shook her head, making Junpei nod. "Ah, still got stuff for the archery club to do? If you're not president of the club next year, I'm gonna be stunned."

"Heh, I'm nowhere near Akemi-senpai's level." Yukari gave a weak laugh. "But thanks for a non-creepy compliment for once."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Hamuko had never been so relieved to hear the end of lunch bell ring.

* * *

_(Dorm, Evening)_  
Karaoke had been fun and infectious, and Hamuko found herself singing the entire way back to the dorm at about eight-thirty. Headphones on, the pink-haired girl practically danced up the stairs and into the dorm, still singing and oblivious to the world. _"I get the top of speed Highway to Heaven of mine, Red zone's the only ticket of the way I believe "Miracle is coming here now" D'you get the top of speed? Highway to Heaven you want It's groovin' on the way to get my love all night long Oh, yes! I'm just drivin' on the game!"_

As the song ended, Hamuko could faintly hear someone chuckling and faint clapping noise. Jumping out of her skin, she spun around, face flushed. There, sitting behind the glass partition at a table, were a couple of boys around her age, both of them watching her.

They couldn't have looked more different if they tried. One of the two – the one applauding her – looked almost as pale as Naoya, his hair somehow an inexplicable shade of silver with matching silver eyes. A bandage rested at the corner of his left eyebrow, and he wore a red sweatervest over the uniform's white undershirt. His hands were covered with black leather gloves, striking against his paler skin.

The teen next to him, however, looked like a runaway member of the yakuza. Unlike the paler boy, he dressed almost exclusively in dark colors, the blazer unzipped to show a black turtleneck beneath it. His hands were covered in bandages up to the first knuckle on each finger, and his shaggy brown hair hung down to his shoulders in what Hamuko would have _sworn _was a hime cut. Pale grey eyes watched her from beneath the fringe of his bangs, and he kept his chin rested on an open palm as he watched the pink-haired girl.

The silver-haired boy spoke up first though. "That was very good. If I didn't know better, I'd say it was Risette I was hearing darting into the dorm." His voice was friendly enough, at least. His statement just made Hamuko turn scarlet.

"Tch, way to mortify the new girl, Aki." The darker boy's voice was deeper and somewhat gravely, making Hamuko focus on him as he shook his head. Pale grey eyes focused on her, and a half smile worked onto his face. "Sorry about that. You hungry?"

"Y – yeah … a little …" Still very embarrassed, Hamuko paused as the scent of food hit her nose. It … it smelled like she had walked into a five star restaurant, and her stomach growled. The dark boy chuckled a bit and beckoned her over, standing up.

"if me being able to hear your stomach all the way across the room is a 'little' hungry, I'd be scared to see you starving." Beckoning hamuko over with a hand, he went behind the bar that separated the dining room from the kitchen. "C'mon, grab a plate and get some food. Mitsuru took her food and left for some sort of meeting, and Takeba ain't back yet. Just me 'n ' Aki here."

Obeying, Hamuko grabbed a plate from where they had been set out. "So you're the male senpai Mitsuru-senpai mentioned last night?" She asked, mouth watering as she stared at the food in front of her. Where had they _gotten _this stuff?!

"Yeah, that's us." The pale boy nodded, making her look at him. "I'm Sanada Akihiko."

"Aragaki Shinjiro." The darker boy picked up the conversation when Akihiko had finished speaking, and the almost flawless timing made Hamuko jolt a bit in surprise; were these two twins or something to respond _that _in tandem with one another? Shinjiro tapped a spoon against the counter. "C'mon, you can talk when you've got some food in you. Whaddaya want?"

"Don't worry, he talks like that to everyone." Akihiko chuckled at Hamuko surprised look, clearly amused as he took a bite of his own food. Biting her lip, Hamuko finally turned back to the brunet male and pointed at the food.

"… Can I have a little bit of everything? It all smells so good I can't decide on what …" Smiling a bit, she relaxed as Shinjiro nodded and began to fill her plate up. "Where'd this come from anyway? This is way too good for takeout …"

"… Shinji cooked it." Akihiko's voice was thick with amusement, and a grin spread across his face at Shinjiro's irritated 'tch' as the other boy finished filling Hamuko's plate for her. "He's probably the only one here who _can _cook, honestly. The dorm mother retired a few years ago due to a bad back injury, so before he started making dinner there was takeout and instant ramen all over the place."

"That nasty shit ain't good for you." Shinjiro grumbled a bit as he sat down in his old spot, his food almost completely gone. "Neither is that protein shit you like to eat as well, Aki."

Sitting down as she listened to the two get into a playful squabble, Hamuko smiled. It was so _nice _to see that at least a couple people in the dorm were actually friendly with one another. She could cut the tension between Yukari and Mitsuru with a knife, and there was no doubt that the brunet girl was wary of Hamuko herself. Smling and eating, the first bite of food had her squealing in delight.

"Told you she'd do that Shinji." Akihiko just laughed, shaking his head before focusing on Hamuko. "So, you're Tsukio Hamuko, right?" He asked, leaning forward against the table while Shinjiro ate next to him. At Hamuko's nod, he smiled. "Well, I'm glad we managed to catch you so soon after you got here. It's probably a big shock moving from Tokyo to something less full of people."

"Yeah, it is a touch different, even if the school's the biggest one I've ever seen." Smiling a bit, Hamuko giggled. "From the way Yukari-san put it, you two played least in sight."

"More like we're always busy with different clubs at the same time." Akihiko nodded. "I'm on the boxing team."

"No Aki, you _are _the boxing team." Shinjiro's deadpan made Hamuko laugh a bit.

"And you, Shinjiro-senpai?" She asked.

"Tch, I just come back here and start cooking. I'm not good with socializing." A quick shrug of the shoulders followed, and the brunet's grey eyes flickered towards the door. On cue, Mitsuru entered, smiling when she saw the group at the table. The red-haired girl walked over and sat down by Hamuko, nodding at the boys. "Weren't expecting you back so soon."

"The meeting was cut short." Mitsuru sighed, fiddling with the curl that fell over her left shoulder. "I'm grateful; it was awfully droll there." Nodding at Akihiko, she smiled. "It's good to see you three getting acquainted, however. Things are so chaotic at this time of year I was afraid I'd have to track you two down and introduce you to Tsukio-san."

"Hehe, you worry too much Mitsuru." Akihiko smiled and shook his head.

Hamuko relaxed again; the three seniors seemed quite comfortable with one another, if the first name basis was anything to go by. Maybe it was just tension with Yukari as a whole? Mitsuru had described the second junior as being 'high-strung'… The thought was cut off by a yawn, her eyes drooping. The older three seemed to notice this, and Mitsuru chuckled.

"I apologize; you're probably still recovering from the trip, aren't you?" Giving the younger girl a soft look, the redhead put a hand on her shoulder. "You should go upstairs and rest a bit; it wouldn't be wise to work yourself to exhaustion on your first day." Nodding a bit, Hamuko got up with a soft mumble of 'thank you for the food' as she headed upstairs. Watching her, Mitsuru waited until she was out of earshot before she sighed and turned to the male seniors. "… Do you think she'd be able to handle it?"

"Well, you're the one who can sense that sort of stuff, Mitsuru, not us." Akihiko just chuckled and finished his food. Leaning forward a bit, he propped his elbows on the table and looked at Shinjiro. "What do you think, Shinji?"

"Tch, as long as she's willing to do this and you don't strongarm her into it, I don't see any problems." Shrugging, the brunet folded his arms behind his head. "But with a team of four, it would probably be safer to go in _there. _Not until we're certain though." Mitsuru nodded at that, wincing a bit.

"Yes … we were rash back then, weren't we?" Sighing a bit, she shook her head. "Anyway, which one of you two was going out for the night? The Lost are on the rise …"

"I believe it's Aki's turn." Shinjiro nodded, gathering up the dishes, only for Mitsuru to stop him.

"I'll clean up tonight, Shinjiro. You should rest as well."

"You're one to talk." Relenting, the brunet male gave Aki a stern look. "Just don't go biting off more than you can chew, okay? We don't need you getting your arms nearly torn off again."

"That only happened because it caught me off guard!" Akihiko huffed a bit, standing up with a grin. "Besides, that was a while ago; I'm stronger than that now." Gripping his uniform blazer, the silver-haired teen headed upstairs. "I'm going to go ahead and get ready."

Mitsuru shook her head after he left up the stairs as well. "… He has such a one-tracked mind …"

* * *

_**Starwing's Notes: **For those wondering where Junpei's nickname of "Luna-tan" comes from, Hamuko's last name Tsukio is spelled with the kanji for "moon". Together with her first name (Depending on how you spell Hamuko in kanji), it can apparently loosely translate to "Child who strikes back at the moon". I figured the name was fitting. _

_Also I promise I won't have Hamuko singing Touhou remixes each chapter. _

_But here's chapter two. For those who wondered and pointed out that Mitsuru seemed a touch informal, well, I've played around with October Fourth a **lot **for this story, and by that I mean I shifted the focus of who committed the murder away from Shinjiro. So now with both Aki and Shinji around, and with the latter being about as blunt as a hammer to the face, Mitsuru's learned to mellow out a bit and has a few who she can call friends. _

_Anyway, I can't promise every update will be this fast. Until next time~_


	3. The Girl's Secret Room

(April 8th)  
The second day of school passed by without much incident as Hamuko settled into the routine. It turns out Yukari had only woke her up so early the first day for her to meet with the teachers and get her paperwork sorted out, but the pink-clad girl still walked with her to school in the morning. She seemed to know a lot about the city, and while Hamuko did find it somewhat boring how often the conversation lingered on clothing. Between that and her having to help out Junpei in class – he really did have balls falling asleep like that – the day was about as average as she assumed every day of school would be.

Returning to the dorm, however, was interesting.

Shutting the door behind her quietly, Hamuko lifted her head to look around. 'Huh …? Isn't it dinnertime?' She thought to herself, surprised to not see the male senpai present. While she figured that Aikihiko had something for boxing going on, Shinjiro didn't seem to have too many activities, so where …?

"Ah, there you are!" Yukari's comment made Hamuko turn towards the lounge; Yukari was sitting at one of the sofas, but she wasn't alone. A man in what Hamuko guessed was his mid-thirties sat in one of the loveseats, reading over a manila envelope in his hands. He looked up at Yukari's words though, looking around and eventually spotting Hamuko.

"So you're the new transfer student?" His voice was pleasant enough, but something about him still made the hairs on the back of Hamuko's neck stand on end. That puzzled her; he didn't look too intimidating. His wavy hair hung down to his shoulders, the same shade of chestnut brown as his eyes. The rectangular framed glasses he wore were clear and modestly-sized, and his three-piece suit was beige. What was it about him that was making her skin crawl.

"Y – yeah … I'm Tsukio Hamuko." Nodding, Hamuko walked over and sat beside Yukari. Settling herself as best as she could, the pink-haired girl turned to the man sitting there. "And you are …?"

"Ah, I'm sorry for being rude." The man chuckled a bit as he set the envelope down on his lap. "I'm Ikutsuki Shuji, chairman of the board for Gekkoukan High school." Smiling, Ikutsuki chuckled. "Sorry if my name is a bit of a mouthful; it's why I'm not too fond of introducing myself."

"Why's the Chairman of the board coming to check up on a transfer student?" Hamuko arched an eyebrow, finding it odd. "I wasn't aware I was in any trouble."

"No, no, you're not." Ikutsuki shook his head. "I do this at the start of every school year, to greet the incoming students." Folding his hands in his lap, Ikutsuki gave Hamuko a nod. "I would have gotten here sooner, but I was busy last night, and you got in so late as it was …"

"Blame the trains." Groaning a bit, the pink-haired girl stretched. "So … why do you do this sorta thing anyway? I can't think you can meet _all _the students that go to Gekkoukan?" she kept from mentioning it seemed kinda creepy of him anyway. Yukari seemed to flinch a bit at the question, but maybe that was just her imagination.

"Just to see if you're settling in well." Ikutsuki gave another easy smile, brown eyes gentle. "I do apologize about being in such a faraway dorm, but there's been confusion at the office. I do hope you don't mind staying here for a few more days." Hamuko shook her head at that, once again spotting a somewhat nervous look on Yukari's face. "Do you have any questions?"

"Yeah, actually …" Hamuko bit her lip. While it was a long shot, maybe they knew something … "The night I first arrived here, there was a little boy here with a contract, and I thought it was the … That's not ringing any bells, is it?" Laughing weakly at Yukari's baffled expression and Ikutsuki's thoughtful one, Hamuko sighed as they both shook her heads. "Guess not."

"Perhaps you were just overtired?" Ikutsuki offered, nodding. "it wouldn't be too strange to imagine that sort of thing if you're dead on your feet."

Shaking her head, Hamuko went to say more when the door opened to show Shinjiro. The male senior tilted his head a moment, most likely confused by the two girls sitting there, but then spotted Ikutsuki. "Oh. Didn't know you'd be over." Shrugging as he walked over a bit, Shinjiro leaned on the back of one sofa as he looked at the small group. "Something going on?"

"Ah, Aragaki-kun." Ikutsuki turned to the brunet more, chuckling. "I was wondering if you were up in your room." Seeing the shake of the head he got in response, the man chuckled. "And Sanada-kun and Mitsuru?"

"Aki's upstairs being Aki and Mitsuru's working." Shrugging his shoulders, Shinjiro straightened and began walking towards the kitchen. "I'm gonna start dinner either way. You gonna stick around, Chairman?"

"Yes; I wanted to speak with Mitsuru about something." Ikutsuki gave a nod. Seizing the moment, Hamuko stood up.

"I'm gonna go run my stuff up to my room. It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Chairman." The last bit was a fraction of a lie, but neither Ikutsuki or Yukari seemed to notice. Yukari actually seemed relieved about something, making Hamuko somewhat curious, but she brushed it off as she walked towards the stairs. Shinjiro spotted her and gave her a crooked half smile.

"Don't feel bad." He murmured. "The chairman creeps everyone out; don't blame you for not wanting to stay around too long." Relieved a bit, Hamuko nodded. "I'll come get you when dinner's ready."

"Thanks, Senpai…" Smiling at that, the pink-haired girl beat a hasty retreat.

* * *

_(Late Evening)  
_After dinner had finished, Hamuko retreated to her room once again. After finishing what little homework she had from the second day of school, she had set about to playing with her COMP. After getting a hold of Junpei online and pestering a couple of online battles out of him – he had completely wiped the floor with her – she had decided to try and figure out more about the gold butterfly lingering in the corner of her touch screen.

So far, nothing had gotten a response out of it, not even talking into the microphone.

"Grrr … stupid piece of random gold." Red eyes frustrated, she bit on the end of her stylus. "If I didn't know my brother any better, I would have thought he just screwed up a bit of the color programming." Tracing the butterfly shape, she sighed and shook her head. "And Junpei hit the sack already, so I can't pester him through the chat room …Ugh. Might as well get to bed." Putting the COMP down on her bedside table, she closed the lid and fell asleep, snuggling into the blankets comfortably.

After what felt like no time at all, she found herself falling through a space as blue as a sapphire. "Huh?" Confused, Hamuko looked around, perplexed. "Where am I …? HOLY CRAP THAT'S A DOOR!" trying to break her rather fast fall, Hamuko windmilled her arms, trying to find something to grab onto. "Dammit, wake up Hamuko!"

"Welcome to the Velvet Room …" The male voice preceded the opening of the door by a nanosecond, and Hamuko found herself falling through before she could register it.

"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAA!"

Whatever she landed on was plush and soft, and nothing else hurt from her sudden fall. Groaning and pushing herself upright, Hamuko found herself staring at a plush of a strange person with a dinosaur skull mask and a black trenchcoat, coffins hanging off of its shoulders. "Who …? Wha?" sitting up, Hamuko grabbed the plushie as she looked around.

"Wait … this is my …" Gasping, she hugged the dinosaur man as she stared with wide eyes. "My old room …"

It was all royal blue and black now, trimmed in gold instead of the colors she remembered her room being (Bright yellow and orange with butterflies and flowers on the walls), but she would recognize her room anywhere. She was sitting on her bed, the silly little canopy drawn around her bed to keep away the ghosts and the cats. Glancing upward, she saw the star-shaped light on her ceiling, the fan turning in a slow, hypnotizing motion.

"Imoto-sama, have you woken up?" The male voice, young and to her right, made Hamuko whirl around as the canopy was pulled aside. Standing there, smiling gently, was a man in his early twenties in what looked like a cross between a bellhop uniform and a flight attendant getup, the colors matching her bedroom. A gold button with a stylized V on it rested on his hat, accenting gold eyes and platinum blond hair.

Hamuko's face burned bright red; she was just in her orange pajamas with bunnies and moons on them, holding a plushie.

"… Meep."

"Ah good, you are awake, Imoto-sama." Chuckling, the man held out a hand covered in a white glove. "Master Igor is waiting to talk with you." Confused, Hamuko took the offered hand and stood up, being led to where her small seat for reading had been as a girl. It was gone, now replaced by a larger version of it. A small, circular table stood in front of it, and behind that was another chair, its back to Hamuko. The young man led her to the empty seat before letting go and going to stand by the other chair.

Going to sit down, Hamuko looked across the table, and almost sat down on the floor from shock. Seated in the other chair was a small man with white hair and an immense nose, in a blue suit with a black tie. Staring eyes focused on her, and a Cheshire cat smile pulled the man's lips upward. "Ah, there you are. I was afraid the fall had put you to sleep again, and it was best to introduce myself to you now."

"… Okay …?" Confused, Hamuko shifted in her seat. "Did you really have to call me here in my pyjamas though?"

The short man chuckled. "I summoned you here in your dreams; I did not expect you to come here in your night clothes."

"So you're saying I could just show up in anything …?" At that, Hamuko's mind jumped to the thought of accidentally winding up in this strange place completely naked. Her face paled far faster than she had ever thought possible.

"Within reason." The short man chuckled. "But first, allow me to introduce myself. I am Igor, and this is my assistant, Theodore." The now named Igor nodded, a hand gesturing to the taller young man. Theodore smiled and gave a polite bow.

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Imoto-sama. But please, call me 'Theo'; only my sisters and Master Igor call me by my full name." Hamuko blushed a bit from once again being called 'Imoto-sama', but imprinted both names into her mind. A snarky part of her mind almost wanted to ask if Igor was the same one from the story of 'Frankenstein', but held her tongue on it.

"It's nice to meet you … but where am I? Wonderland?" Rubbing her head, she hugged the plush and looked around. "My memories? This was my old room before the accident …"

"We are in the Velvet Room." Igor nodded, still smiling. "It exists between mind and matter, fantasy and reality, physical and insubstantial, ephemeral and infinite."

"Is that a very fancy way of saying this is limbo?" Hamuko felt a trickle of sweat run down her neck, not knowing what to think. Theodore seemed to be hiding a chuckle behind his hand, and Igor smiled in amusement. "So why call me here?" Igor chuckled more, holding up the red booklet the boy in striped pajamas had given her to sign. "Isn't that the dorm contract?"

"It is your contract; only one who has signed such a contract can enter here." Igor's eyes had a playful spark to them. "You will be awakening to your power soon, and it is then that my purpose shall be explained." He extended his hand, a blue key with an elegant blue morpho butterfly engraved onto it and forming a hand hold. "Hold onto this. It will prove vital."

Confused, Hamuko took it, noting with interest as she stuck it in her pajama's breast pocket that it was the same shade of blue as the room. Igor chuckled and nodded. "Now, time marches on in your world … we shall meet again." Before Hamuko could protest or ask any other questions, she felt herself falling asleep. "Theodore, please put Master Hamuko to bed." The next thing she knew, she was being picked up, plush and all, and was carried back to the bed. Waving as Hamuko was carried off to bed, Igor spoke one last time. "From here on, you are our guest in the Velvet Room."

"Rest well, Imoto-sama. Things will be getting more hectic from here on out." Theodore tucked her into bed, and Hamuko was too tired to protest. The moment she felt the blanket beneath her chin, she rolled onto her side and fell fast asleep once again.

* * *

(Fourth Floor)  
"This feels wrong." Akihiko frowned from his spot on one of the chairs, silver eyes full of unease. "It feels like we're violating her sense of privacy." Mitsuru and Yukari both turned to look at him, Ikutsuki giving a nod from where he sat. The four were in a large, spacious room, a large computer screen on one wall showing a view of Hamuko's room while she slept.

"Yeah … it does feel really creepy doing this to her." Yukari sighed in agreement, fidgeting a bit as she gripped the hem of her skirt. "Isn't there some other way we could do this? I – I mean, she was awake when she came to the dorm, and she didn't seem to be freaked out at _all _by what was going on."

"Takeba, she all but knocked you onto the ground when you attempted to attack her." Mitsuru brushed a stray curl behind her shoulders as she spoke, watching a large clock tick towards midnight. "But you are right, she _was _oddly alert. If nothing else, she has been through a great deal."

"Well, now comes the real test." Ikutsuki smiled and spoke up, turning to the high schoolers behind him. "It's almost midnight, so now we shall see for certain if we'll be able to ask her for aid or not."

As the adult spoke, the clock struck midnight, and time froze. With an electronic fizzling noise, the lights turned off, plunging the room into sharp relief from the only two light sources available; the immense computer monitor and the moon outside, almost full as the outside world turned into a mass of light and shadow. The four present tensed as a faint static came from the console that rested beneath the monitor.

"**Shit … I could read a book the moon's so damn bright tonight." **Shinjiro's voice came on over a monitor, making the others relax a fraction. **"So how's it going there? Tsukio still asleep, or do we have another disappointing night in the shitter?" **

Turning at once to the screen at the question, the four watched the camera into Hamuko's room. The girl hadn't changed at all, and just rolled over in her sleep while hugging her stuffed cat. "No, she's completely unchanged." Ikutsuki chuckled. "If anything, she's even more relaxed than she was not ten minutes ago, although she's about ready to fall onto the floor if she keeps rolling around like that."

"**Great … And shit's calm out here tonight too. I'll walk my full patrol, but if something shows up that's more than I can handle, I'm gonna be calling Takeba out here." **

"W- wha?! ME!?" Yukari jerked backwards at Shinjiro's statement, hazel eyes wide. "Why me, Shinjiro-senpai?"

"**Because you need to get your ass trained, and it's easier to get that training with someone more experienced there to make sure shit doesn't go south and you don't get your ass handed to you on a silver platter."**

Shaking his head at his best friend's deadpan, Akihiko stretched his arms over his head. "She seems completely stable to boot; nothing too major has reacted to the change to the Dark Hour, and no leanings at all to Transforming."

"Yes, that _is _unusual, Akihiko." Mitsuru nodded, twirling some of her hair around. "When most enter the Dark Hour, they experience some sort of change, be it temporary memory loss or narcolepsy. Even those with a very strong Potential feel some of these symptoms at first until they adjust." Red-brown eyes narrowing a fraction, Mitsuru drummed her nails against one arm. "It'll be scary to see what her unleashed potential can do."

Still focusing on the screen as he listened, Ikutsuki let out a noise of surprise. Before the other three could ask him what for, he zoomed in on the bedside table, pointing at the COMP as a bright green light slowly blinked. "How is that still on? No other electronics apart from our specialized gear function in the Dark Hour."

"If I may offer advice?" Mitsuru nodded at the computer monitor itself. "Tsukio-san is the younger sister of the programmer Tsukio Naoya, who is well-known for being a veritable genius when it comes to programming electronics. It is fully possible that he modified whatever it is that is on so that it functions in the Dark Hour."

"Ah, excellent point, Mitsuru." Ikutsuki nodded. "If I'm correct, he also is the one that modified the security computers and such for the Kirijo Group just a few years ago now." Pushing his glasses back up his nose, the man gave a soft smile. "Perhaps it will be useful to see what else will happen with her. we do need more members, what with the cases of Apathy Syndrome on the rise …"

"Yeah, we do … but how the heck are we going to bring this up in the first place?" Akihiko seemed genuinely puzzled. "It's not like this is something we can just casually bring up, let alone how she'd react to us spying on her." As he spoke, Hamuko fell out of her bed and woke up. The four in the surveillance room watched as the pink-haired girl merely muttered curses under her breath and crawled back into bed. "… Yeah, she's completely used to the Dark Hour if she's doing that sort of thing." Shaking his head, the silver-haired senior stretched his arms. "I think we should cut the camera for the night if she's just gonna sleep more."

"Yes, we have what information we need for the evening." Ikutsuki nodded, switching off the view into Hamuko's room. "Let's finish our observations tomorrow night, and then work out how to approach her on the topic tomorrow."

Yukari remained silent at that, even as the others nodded their agreement.

* * *

Back in her room, Hamuko felt herself drifting off to sleep as something small and metallic on the floor caught her eye. "Mmm?" Bending down, she picked it up. When she got a good look at it, she blinked "Is this …? If it's still here when I wake up, I'm gonna … bleah, I'll just go back to sleep. What harm can a key do?" With that thought, she closed her hand as she settled back into bed, falling asleep.

In her hand was the blue, butterfly-themed key that had been given to her in the Velvet Room.

* * *

**_Starwing's Notes: "_**_Imoto" means "little sister" in Japanese, but in context here with "-sama", can also take to mean "Young Lady". Theodore is essentially calling Hamuko "Small Lady" instead of "Master" like in the original translation. _

_Not too much to say about this chapter on my end. Sorry it's so short, but it's mostly filler for the plot starting next chapter. Yay plot. _

_Until next time, seeya~ _


	4. Magus Night

(April 9th; Full Moon)  
The next day, Hamuko flopped out on her bed after class had ended, fully intent on doing her classwork while lying down. "I don't want to sit at my desk to do classwork after sitting down all day…" Rolling onto her stomach, she pulled out her homework supplies, setting her COMP off to one side to charge the battery. "Well, it works in the hidden hour; that'll be useful at some point." Opening her book on her bed, Hamuko began her studying.

_**Muda na jikan ni mirai wa aru no?  
Konna tokoro ni watashi wa iru no?**_

"Who could be calling me?" Pulling the phone out of her bag's pocket, Hamuko laughed at the name on the screen. "Ah, it's Hiiro." Shaking her head, she put it on speaker and set it down. "Hey Hiro, what're you doing?" She smiled as she heard a pair of voices in the background. "Ah, Atsuro-kun and Yoohoo are there with you too?"

"I'm NOT YOO-HOO!" A girl slightly younger than Hamuko yelled back over the phone line, making the two boys with her laugh harder.

"Sorry about that, Hamuko-nee. I was just calling to make sure you were still alive and well after high school." Hamuko smiled; her cousin Hijiri Hiro never changed. He and his friends Kihara Atsuro and Tanikawa Yuzu were probably all sitting around a table at Hiro's house, eating snacks while working on their own homework. "I'm sorry I wasn't up in time to see you off at the train station, but I was more tired than I thought I was."

"And you were also getting over being sick, Hiro." Shaking her head in amusement, Hamuko did a bit of her homework.

"Hey, Hamuko-chan! Did you like the gift Naoya-sensei gave you?" There was Atsuro. The boy idolized Naoya, and was Hiro's best friend; he amused Hamuko like nothing else. Giggling a bit, she nodded despite it being a phone conversation.

"Yeah, I got it Atsuro-kun. I like it a lot." After a moment of doing her homework, she smirked. "And how's Yoohoo doing? You three all surviving freshmen year without me there to help?"

"Hey~!" Yuzu's complaint at the nickname made Hamuko and Atsuro laugh again, and Hiro let out an audible facepalm. Huffing, Yuzu recovered after a moment. "Yeah, we're doing okay. The workload is pretty crazy though; how can you handle going to a private school? It's gotta be even more insane than it is here …"

"I manage." Smiling, Hamuko looked at her homework. "The English Composition isn't too bad, and History's just review at this point. The math would probably kill you and Hiro though, Yoohoo." Laughing at the other indignant shout, she smiled a bit. "Has my brother been over at your place at all, Hiro? I'm worried he'll turn into a hikkomori without me around to drag him out into public."

"Once or twice, don't worry, Hamuko-nee." Hiro laughed. "Don't worry, you're not the only one who worries about him." Hamuko let out a soft sigh at that; she really did worry too much sometimes.

"Sorry, sorry … I'm just worried about my big brother leaving me without letting me have a say in it." Giving a weak laugh, she turned her gaze to her homework. "I've got to focus on my Classic Literature homework, you guys. I'll call you back later." Hiro seemed to know why there was such a sharp change in topic, because he bade goodbye and hung up the phone, Atsuro and Yuzu calling out goodbye as the dialtone started.

* * *

(Evening, Tokyo)

Tsukio Naoya took a sip of the sake he had at his hand, focused on his laptop in front of him. The albino was dressed normally, his black pants and blue shirt covered by both his matrix haori and the kotatsu he was sitting at. His glasses were settled over his nose, allowing him to read most of the text on the computer screen. "Hopefully she'll be doing well; I didn't want her to go back to that city, but she was so happy to get into a high-end private school."

"Hehe, are you being a helicopter brother, Naoya?" A teasing, playful voice chuckled as someone else settled at the kotatsu. Naoya looked up briefly, shaking his head; the newcomer was a man about twenty-five in a purple suit with a red tie. A pair of bright silver eyes peered out from behind black hair, slicked back to reveal three earrings in his ears and the wry grin on his face, a goatee covering his chin. Smirking playfully again, the other man took a bit of sake for himself. "Relax, alright; she'll be fine. If it'll make you feel better, I'll go and linger around Iwatodai to keep an eye on her for you."

"That worries me even more, Loki." Shaking his head as he poured himself a small glass of sake, Naoya's red eyes flickered to the window. "I do hope things are going well for her. A private school of Gekkoukan's caliber has a steep pace to it."

"Hehe, I'm sure she's _fine, _Naoya." Grinning a bit, Loki took another drink. "If she's anything like you, I'm sure she might actually be _bored _more often than she is overwhelmed." Drumming his fingers on the table, Loki eyed the small, plain green COMP next to Naoya's laptop. "You're still working on that commission for the Kuzunohas? I thought you had finished it."

Naoya shook his head. "A prototype; I gifted it to Hamuko, and I've been observing it remotely during the hidden hour. It's good to see that the sheer drain of power near the gateway to Hades doesn't affect it." Pushing his glasses further up his nose, the albino glanced out the window for a second. What he saw out there made him frown.

"… Loki. The moon. Should it be that large so early in the year?"

At the question, the Norse god lifted his head, silver eyes narrowing as he stared at the large, cream-colored orb that Naoya had spotted. "… No. No it should not be."

* * *

(Dark Hour, Iwatodai Dorm)  
Up in the observatory room once again, Mitsuru looked up as the familiar sensation as electricity drained from the building, heading towards Port Island. Sighing a bit, she shifted and lifted her book more, using the now harsh white light of the moon to read by. The words seemed to blur a bit as she read, making her sigh after a moment and close the book and look around. Ikutuski was still observing Hamuko as she slept, the pink haired girl having fallen asleep with her COMP in her hands. Yukari was sitting off to one side, chewing her lip as she rolled a silver gun around in her hands. Shinjiro was lying on one of the sofas, but Mitsuru wasn't fooled; the brunet would be on his feet in seconds if danger came around.

As the thought crossed her mind, Mitsuru jerked a bit as the speaker turned on. Ikutsuki paused, perplexed, and hit the button to have Akihiko's voice come over the speakers, loud and clear.

"**Holy shit … what is this thing!?" **He sounded panicked, making Mitsuru walk towards the microphone to let her speak with him. **"I didn't see where it came from, and it's out of there…!" **

"Akihiko, what's going on?" Mitsuru cut him off, noting with amusement that Shinjiro was indeed on his feet behind her.

"**It's one of THEM, but it's bigger than most of the little ones!" **static was heard through the speaker, and a loud screeching noise could be heard. **"! Gack!" **There were a few second where it sounded as if Akihiko had hit the pavement. He was back within a heartbeat though, panting hard. **"D-dammit … my ribs. It got me on my weak side." **

"Dammit Aki, I told you not to be careless!" Shinjiro was besides Mitsuru in an instant.

"**Sorry, it came out of nowhere! I'm heading back there now!" **

"YOU'RE WHAT!?"

Yukari and Ikutsuki both fell out of their chairs in surprise at the combined shout. While Shinjiro spun off into a flurry of curses in Spanish, Mitsuru regained her composure. "Akihiko, when it gets here, you're going to help fight it off. For now, focus on not letting it catch you again." Not giving Akihiko a chance to retaliate, she turned around and folded her arms. "Chairman, I recommend you stay here in the office. Takeba!" Turning to the brunet girl, Mitsuru nodded at the monitor. "You go get Tsukio and the two of you leave through the rear entrance; one of us will come fetch you when it's safe."

"R-right!" Yukari gave a nervous nod, sticking the silver gun she held back into the holster. "S-should I go get something for her to use in case of danger?"

"That would be wise." Nodding, Mitsuru turned to Shinjiro. "Well, Shinjiro? Shall we go greet our bumbling friend?"

"Tch, like we have much of a choice." Grinning a bit, Shinjiro cracked his neck before walking over to a closet near the exit. "You want your usual, Mitsuru?" Opening the closet as he spoke, the brunet revealed a collection of weaponry as he pulled out a bamboo bow and a quiver full of arrows. "Oi! Takeba!" Holding it out to her, he passed along a small buckler and nightstick to the brunette girl. "For Tsukio; until we figure out what she prefers, hand those to her. She'll at least be able to protect herself."

Nodding, Yukari scurried out the door, Ikutsuki having slipped into a sidedoor already. Turning to Mitsuru, Shinjiro offered her a fine-hilted rapier with a lot more delicacy than would be expected. Receiving a nod of thanks, he pulled out a war hammer for himself and swung it over one shoulder. "C'mon, let's roll out the welcome wagon."

Downstairs, Akihiko cursed as he rested against the door, holding his right side. He'd gotten hit by the blunt edge of a sword, and it had probably broken a few of his ribs; he couldn't tell for sure. "Gaaaaaaaaa…" Lifting his head as Mitsuru and Shinjiro came downstairs, he pushed himself upward and leaned against the door for support. "Hehe … sorry, but I had no clue where else to run after it got my ribs."

"Well, as understandable as that is, there _are _a couple of civilians here, and Takeba isn't trained enough. You will have to help us fight it off." Drawing the rapier, Mitsuru focused on the door just as something crashed into it with enough force to shake the walls. "What on earth!?"

"I told you, it's a big one." Straightening as much as he could with the fractured ribs, Akihiko nodded. "Not as large as _that _one, but still pretty bad."

As the dorm shook a second time, Shinjiro swore again and leveled the war hammer in preparation. "Dammit Aki, once your ribs are healed I'm gonna kick your damn ass. For now, let's put this fucker into the ground."

* * *

Yelping as she fell out of bed, Hamuko blinked when she saw that she had beaten Shirona. "Oh hey, saweeeeeeeeeeeet~" Giggling, Hamuko went to press the A button on her COMP when the dorm shook. "w-what in the?! Where'd the Oni come from?!" Grabbing her parasol, she shoved the COMP into her pyjama pocket when she heard hammering on the door.

"Hey! Wake up, we gotta get out of here!" It was Yukari, and she sounded panicked. Not bothering with much else, Hamuko ran to the door, opening it and gaping at the sight of the pink-clad girl.

"… I would ask if we're under attack but that would be stupid." Scowling, Hamuko looked at her parasol for a moment before opening it. Ignoring Yukari's confusion, she pushed the 'fabric' to the head of the pole before twisting the upper part of the pole clockwise. With a mechanical snapping noise, the different panels of the parasol folded up to show a steely underside, the silk-covered side hidden. "I'll be good with this, Yukari-chan."

"W – what the heck is that?!" Shaking her head, Yukari grabbed Hamuko's wrist and hauled the pink haired girl out behind her. "Come on, we've gotta get out the back door; the senpai are fighting something off at the front door."

Nodding in what little ways she could comprehend, Hamuko heard glass shattering in her room; something had just broken her window. Biting her lip, she was more impressed she didn't trip over the stairs in the harsh lighting, following Yukari to the first floor and into the kitchen. She could hear a loud commotion outside the front door, but knew it would be stupid to go and check. As the two girls neared the door, however, a loud beeping noise went off.

"H-huh?!" Yukari seemed to know the source of the noise, and Hamuko watched her answer a communicator – stuck in her ear like a Bluetooth piece – but was distracted by her COMP making a strange noise. Pulling it out, she blinked; her game had vanished from the screen, and was replaced by the golden butterfly from her screen, albeit much larger on the top screen. The touch screen, however, contained a cryptic set of words that puzzled the pink-haired girl.

"_**The Arcana is the means by which all is revealed.  
The moment man devoured the fruit of knowledge, he sealed his fate...  
Entrusting his future to the cards, man clings to a dim hope.  
You, who wish to safeguard the future…"  
**_

"W-what do you mean that wasn't the one!?" Yukari's panicked cry cut her off. "Bu – but where …?" As the brunette girl dithered, something large and heavy slammed into the rear door. Not wasting a second thought, Hamuko returned the COMP to her pocket, grabbed Yukari's arm and began to make a break for the stairs. Not pausing, she raced up them, keeping her parasol in the hand not yanking Yukari along with her.

They had reached the third floor when they heard the sound of the rear door crashing down, followed by the sound of something large starting to climb up after them. "Oh no … we gotta keep going …!" Swallowing, Yukari took the bow strung across her back and strung it, reaching for an arrow. "C-come on, let's get up to the roof!"

Nodding, Hamuko started the charge, now holding her parasol in both hands. Yukari followed her at a ready pace, and both of them heard what they could have sworn was a large horse below. Not pausing to look over the banister, the two girls reached the door to the outside. Nodding at Yukari, Hamuko pushed it open and stumbled into the harsh lighting. Yukari followed her and slammed the door shut behind them both, panting.

"We should be safe here," turning as she spoke, Yukari panted a bit. "Sorry I didn't wait for you to put something on your feet, but well …" Wincing as she glanced down at Hamuko's feet, the brunet girl shook her head. "A- anyway, the senpai should be done soon, and they'll come for us."

Nodding, Hamuko went to ask her what the hell was going on when something blocked out part of the moon. Feeling dread creep into her stomach, Hamuko turned, gripping the parasol in both hands once again. Next to her, Yukari followed her gaze and dropped the bow, eyes wide in fear.

"W … what in the …"

Before them stood something Hamuko was convinced had crawled out of a book of Lovecraft's works. It resembled a monkey in passing, but staring at it proved quite a different story. Multiple arms hung down from the creature's form, several of them holding large swords and staves. A blue mask sat in the center of the beast, and three heads rose from the shoulders. One had no eyes, another no mouth, and the third had no ears. All in all, the creature seemed completely horrific, and the two heads with eyes were focused on the two girls.

Hamuko, about ready to growl and decide a tactical retreat was in order, stopped when she saw Yukari pull the gun out of its hostler. In the brief seconds she had before Yukari had the barrel placed against her head, the pink-haired girl noted 'S.E.E.S' engraved on the bright silver. "W – what the?! Yukari what the hell are you doing!?" Reaching out, she tried to knock the weapon out of Yukari's hands before she pulled the trigger.

Yukari managed to dodge, the trigger being pulled. Instead of turning her friend's head into a mist of red, it instead summoned a small column of wind around her, knocking away one of the monster's hands. "I … I can do this …!" Shaking all over, Yukari tried again, this time producing two larger wind columns but nothing else.

The third attempt was halted as the monster attacked her, sending the pink-clad girl in one direction and the gun in the other. Reaching down to grab it, Hamuko instead paused as her COMP lit up. Drawing it out of her pocket once again, she opened the handheld in time to see a fast moving column of code race up the screen that vanished when she blinked. Instead, the golden butterfly returned once again, new words appearing on the touch screen.

"_**Let's Survive."**_

* * *

Inside the control room, Mitsuru had managed to get the cameras working in time to zoom in on the roof. "Takeba's down." Frowning, the redhead turned to Shinjiro as he managed to get the barely conscious Akihiko onto a seat. "We need to get up to the roof as fast as we can, Shinjiro." Nodding, the brunet stood and went to the door, Mitsuru hot on his heels.

"Wait one moment." IKutsuki's voice, somehow calm, made them stop and turn to look. The chairman was watching the screen intently, Hamuko now in center focus as her COMP's light turned a vibrant blue. Turning to the seniors, the man's glasses shone in the harsh lighting as he smiled. "Let's see what she does, shall we?"

* * *

On the roof, Hamuko stared as the words vanished from the COMP and the butterfly changed from gold to an iridescent blue. In her mind's eye, the boy from the night she arrived at the dorm reappeared, smiling faintly.

"_Go ahead." _

Closing her eyes, Hamuko let herself press the start button on the console. A blue light exploded around her as the coding returned, this time seemingly re-writing parts of itself to accommodate whatever it was that it was doing. As she focused, a warm fire began to build up in her, and her mouth opened.

"Persona …!"

The sound of shattering glass rang in her ears, the blue light surging upwards around her as she did so. She could hear Yukari cry out in surprise at the edge of her hearing, and she opened her eyes in time to see a bright figure emerge from the blue light. It was feminine in form, resembling a ball-jointed puppet of sorts. A large speaker dominated its gold chest, and a red scarf wrapped around where its neck would be. A black face with Hamuko's own red eyes emerged, bright orange hair as long as her own flaring in the wind to expose a heart-shaped lyre strapped to its back. As the light dimmed, a voice that reminded Hamuko of her mother rang in her mind.

"_Thou art I, and I am thou._

_I am Eurydice, Maiden of the Lyre…" _

As the blue light dimmed, Hamuko welcomed the surge of power in her body as Eurydice let out a shriek, pink and gold flames appearing around it. The large monster seemed to be taken aback by the sudden arrival, rearing back with its blades. Opening her mouth as she pointed at the monstrosity, Hamuko went to give Euryidce a command when a searing pain shot through her, a red line flashed in her vision. "A-ah!" Nearly dropping her COMP as her hands flew to her head, Hamuko didn't notice Eurydice reacting as well.

Off to the side, Yukari found herself paralyzed in shock as she watched; the puppet Hamuko had summoned gained cracks on its surface, the pink and gold fire being replaced by blue and black flames. Something beneath the puppet's skin bulged, and as a piercing scream shot through the evening, a pair of white-gloved hands punched through the head and ripped it open, shedding the metallic skin.

The new shape appeared masculine, most of the body covered by a black overcoat. White gloves and boots stood in sharp contrast to it, and a helmet resembling a dragon covered the featureless head. What was unmistakably a series of coffins chained together hung around the aberration like a cloak, and a sword as long as Yukari was tall hung at its waist.

"W … what the …?"

Inside, the senpai could only stare in shock at what they were seeing. "W … what the FUCK is that!?" Shinjiro looked at the chairman, vocalizing the confusion that had affected them all. Ikutsuki shook his head, worry creasing his brows.

"I don't know …"

On the roof, the masked form focused its gaze on the monster in front of it, which had turned from wary to frightened. Letting out a bellow, the masked creature drew its sword and charged, slashing off half of the arms and one of the heads in a single blow. Letting out a frightened screech as it tried to get away, the monstrous form suffered losing its abdomen in the next second, the sword eventually impaling it to keep it in place. Roaring again, the masked creature began tearing it apart with its bare hands, globs of liquefied shadows flying all over the roof, dissolving in the moonlight.

When all that was left was the center head and the torso, the masked form reared back one fist, black and violet flames erupting over. Not giving the defenseless monster a chance to escape, it lunged, the gloved hand punching through the mask with ease to emerge out of the other side. Screeching in a voice unlike a dying animal, the abomination dissolved into goop, the shards of the blue mask hitting the roof and dissolving.

Finished, the creature turned back to the dorm and let out one last primordial cry, shaking the buildings around them.

Then, as soon as it had appeared, it was gone.

With the splitting pain gone, Hamuko felt herself drop to her knees in temporary shock, the parasol at her side. Above her, Eurydice reformed, undamaged from what had just occurred, before fading into blue mist that slowly seeped into Hamuko's body.

Trying to get her bearings, the pink-haired girl gripped the parasol and pushed herself upright, holding the pole with the blades facing downward. Her COMP remained on the concrete, but the screen was now stable; a bright blue screen with a picture of Eurydice on the top screen. The touch screen held the picture of a tarot card next to a list of skills. Picking it up, Hamuko sighed a bit in exhaustion as Yukari raced over to her.

"Are you okay!?" Panting a bit, Yukari picked up the gun and stowed it away again. Nodding, Hamuko glanced at the roof, frowning as she spotted a couple of blobs still left behind. As she watched, the two forms grew arms, masks identical to the recently destroyed beast serving for their faces. Frowning, Hamuko stored the COMP away again and rushed at them, moving on sheer adrenaline as she brought her parasol into an overhand swing.

"Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! " Reaching the first one, she swung. The multiple thin, sharp edges that the folded up parasol had become slashed through it with shocking ease, making it cry out in pain. Hacking at it desperately, she yipped as the second one blindsided her. Yelping as she hit the ground in a roll, Hamuko got to her feet once again, panting.

"Eurydice!"

Thankfully, the puppet responded to her shout, Eurydice emerging in a flurry of blue light to slam its lyre into the second shadow, temporarily stunning it. Finishing off the first one, the pink haired girl turned to it in time to see claws coming at her. twisting her parasol's handle counter-clockwise, the metal unfolded in time to catch the attack, some of the silk ripping. Swearing, Hamuko kicked it, sending the mask flying off as the monster let out a defeated gurgle before disintegrating.

Once she was certain the last of them had been defeated, Hamuko closed her parasol, turning to face Yukari as she felt herself swaying on her feet. "… I'm so going to kick Naoya's ass for not telling me shit …"

With that, she promptly collapsed, Yukari's panicked shout of her name following her into unconsciousness.

* * *

_**Starwing's Note: **Gotta lot of stuff to cover, but let's start here. To the Anonymous reviewer who asked if the DeSu 1 protagonist was related to Hijiri from Nocture; while it is possible, that wasn't what I was exactly going for. Since I'm horrible at remembering the manga's name for the protagonist, I have him named "Hijiri Hiro" in my version of Overclocked and any work he might be involved in. The name can translate to "Generous saint", a fitting/ironic name indeed if you know the plot of Devil Survivor One. _

_On that note, seeing as how Hiro has a different family name from Hamuko and Naoya; The former's mother was the sister to the latter two's father, and "Tsukio" is her maiden name. _

_-I go with the name Eurydice for the Female Protagonist's Persona mostly due to OCD and me being a major mythology nerd, but at the same time, Eurydice is a much more fitting Persona for the protagonists when you step back and look at the overall plot of both the "Journey" and the "Answer" in comparison to the myth. _

_-To those that don't know what a buckler is, it's a small round shield. Yukari wears it on the arm that holds her bow, to keep it from being injured by an attacker when she's taking aim at something else. _

_... Well, that's a more action-packed chapter than the last few ones. It's always fun to get things rolling with the Thanatos beatdown. _

_That about covers it; I'll see you the next time I update _


	5. At the End of Daylight

(?, Velvet Room)

"It is good to see you again." Blinking a bit at the sound of Igor's voice as she woke up, Hamuko looked around. She had somehow returned to the Velvet Room in her unconsciousness, sitting the lyre-shaped chair across from Igor. Theodore stood by his side as well, unchanged from their first meeting. Shifting a bit, she looked around the Velvet Room, noticing with interest that it seemed to be a bit lighter in the room.

"So I'm not dead, I take it." Smiling and shaking her head, Hamuko turned to Igor in time to see him hold up a card. Eurydice's picture graced one side, whereas the back boasted a mask motif, the colors the same hues of blue as the room intermixed with white. "... That's the …" She began, not knowing exactly what it was.

"This is the Power you awakened to." Igor explained, nodding his head. "This is Eurydice, your Persona."

"Persona …?" Tilting her head to one side, Hamuko ran a hand through her pink hair; she could faintly remember saying something about that when she first called Eurydice out of the COMP, but apart from that, it was a mostly hazy memory until she started fighting the miniature blobs. "What exactly is a Persona?"

"A Persona is a mask a person uses to shield them from the dangers of the outside world." Igor continued his explanation with a nod, the card Eurydice was on slowly vanishing. "Every person on this planet has one, but not everyone can bring it upon themselves to use that mask to their advantage. Instead, they let it linger in the back of their brains, covering up the darkest parts of themselves." Large eyes stared at Hamuko, the grin somehow growing wider. "You, however, are different."

"I am?" Blinking, the girl looked around. "Is it because she decided to pop up through my COMP somehow? I think that was more my brother's fault than anything else."

"No no, although for a mere human to know the proper way to create such a device ..." Igor shook his head. "I apologize, I will have to ask Master Philemon about that. But that is not what interests me so much about your power." Grinning, the small man nodded. "You have an impeccably rare gift, the Wild Card."

"... So I'm basically playing Poker with Jungian Psychology?" Deadpanning, Hamuko propped her elbow on one knee. Opening her hand to place her chin on her palm, the pink-haired girl arched an eyebrow. "What all does the Wild Card do?"

"It is like the number zero." Igor seemed amused by her tone. "It appears empty, but in all reality, it is full of infinite possibilities." At this, he chuckled. "However, I wouldn't recommend dividing by it. The sort of upheaval that much power would cause would potentially disrupt the very flow of the universe."

"Okay fine I won't use my power to divide good and evil in two. Way to suck the fun out of everything." Smiling as Theodore chuckled at the exchange, she relaxed a bit and nodded. "So … how all do I use the Wild Card anyway? Is that why dinosaur face ripped his way out of Eurydice?"

"That was an irregularity. The reason you are actually unconscious is due to the fact that 'dinosaur face' is far too powerful for you to control properly." Igor gave a sagely nod, hands folding up underneath his chin. "You must get stronger in both mind and soul, and train yourself to use your power correctly. There have been many a times a Wild Card has accidentally killed themselves by trying to force a strong Persona out before they could handle the strain. That is partially why my Master has stopped granting out the Wild Card directly, instead waiting for cues from those who think a human is capable of handling such a power."

Nodding a bit as she let the information sink in, Hamuko arched an eyebrow. She was curious as to who this 'Master Philemon' Igor kept bringing up was, but he didn't seem to be too vital to the point now. "Okay, so how do I train myself for the Wild Card?"

"Your allies can instruct you on the finer details of training your body, but there is one thing that I can assist you with," Igor's grin seemed to widen. "In fact, that is our purpose here, but that can wait for another day." Shifting, the older man paused for a moment. "But for now, I shall inform you of this; the easiest way to strengthen your Wild Card is to form bonds with people, or Social Links."

"... So you're saying I can get stronger through the power of friendship?" Tilting her head to one side, Hamuko mentally noted at how similar to a child's television show this sounded. "That sounds like it could be abused by someone who has unkind intentions in mind."

"There are ways of … discouraging … such actions." The tone Igor's voice took made the pink-haired girl shiver in fright. "The worst that has happened, however, was someone merely being banned from the Velvet Room and losing their Wild Card, but that was an extreme case, one we do not like talking about." Chuckling once more, the old man nodded. "However, I do not suspect you to have such a problem … After all, you are a unique instance in one case."

"And that is …?" Curious and somewhat worried, Hamuko watched as Igor snapped his fingers. Above his head appeared a strange silhouette, the shape resembling a person with four arms. One half appeared female, while the other was male, and each hand seemed to clench onto something. As she stared, a card floated down into her hands. Glancing, she blinked; it was a tarot card, the image of a flaming goat skull with a horned man and woman looking at it, the numeral for fourteen beneath the image. "... The Devil?"

"Yes; you have already cleared one Social link." Igor's grin grew wider. "I believe that if you set your mind to it, you will know who that person was ..." Nodding, he gave Hamuko a pat on the hand as the card and silhouette vanished at the same time. "However, you must strengthen the rest of your bonds, so that one day you can harness your full power."

Withdrawing the hand, Igor nodded. "However, time marches on in your world, and your allies might begin to worry. It is time for you to return to your world." Nodding her head at him, Hamuko yawned a bit. As she stood up, Theodore went to her side, clearly planning on escorting her to bed. "Also, the device you used to summon with will most likely have finished tailoring itself to suit you. I sent Elizabeth to make certain of it."

"Elizabeth …?" Hamuko looked at Theodore in confusion, making the young man flush a faint bit in his cheeks.

"One of my sisters, Imoto-sama. Perhaps an opportunity to introduce you to her will come soon." Leading her to the bed, Theodore smiled. "However, that must wait until you have recovered fully. You should rest now, Imoto-sama." Waiting until Hamuko nodded and laid down, the young man gave her a soft smile as he gripped the canopy around the bed. "Until next time, Imoto-sama, farewell."

Hamuko could only faintly hear him as she let her eyes shut, the soft blue light of the Velvet Room soothing her back into unconsciousness.

* * *

(April 19th, Hospital)  
The covers she was lying on were soft, but still on the scratchy side. Moaning as she missed the sheets that made up her bed in the Velvet Room, Hamuko woke up and found herself staring up at a white ceiling. A nearby window was open, showing the sun high in they sky. She was also several stories in the air, if the view of a wide open bay full of ships told her anything. "Where ….?"

"Oh, you finally woke up!" Yukari's voice at the foot of her bed made Hamuko bite back a wince. Pushing herself upright, the pink-haired girl looked at her brunet classmate. Yukari seemed relieved to see her up and awake. "Thank goodness … None of the doctors could find anything wrong with you. They said you were just tired."

"I feel like I was hit by a truck made out of elephants." Sitting up, Hamuko brushed some of her hair out of her face. "How long have I been out?"

"About ten days." Nodding, Yukari gave a sad smile. "I'm sorry, the senpai and I have a lot of explaining to do, don't we? I can explain what I can, but I think the senpai would have better luck." Looking out the window a bit as she brushed her hair out of her eyes, the brunet nodded at Hamuko. "Those things you were fighting …? We call them Shadows."

"I dunno, calling them 'pains in the ass' would work too." Chuckling a bit, Hamuko smiled as Yukari relaxed a bit. The pink-haired girl could remember what Igor had told her about the 'Persona', but he had been vague, so perhaps she could ask Yukari a thing or two about them … "So what all did I do to beat them? I just remember my COMP wigging out and that puppet lady ..."

"You summoned what we call a Persona," Yukari nodded. "It's a Power that lets you fight the Shadows, but even the senpai were surprised when yous activated like it did. And then that huge black thing … none of us know what that was." At that, she looked down. "I … I should be able to, at least in theory, but that was my first night attempting anything." Her hands gripped her charcoal skirt – had she just come here from school? - and she gave a sad laugh. "I was so scared I couldn't do anything, and you had to pick up my slack."

"H-hey ..." Hamuko winced, reaching out for the brunet. Yukari might have been somewhat obnoxious and tense these past few days, it was obvious the other girl genuinely felt bad for freezing up when she had. "It's okay; we all got out of it alright, after all … I think."

"Akihiko-senpai's got a few fractured ribs, but that wasn't your fault." Shaking her head, Yukari smiled. "he's so upset at being off of the frontlines, it's almost hysterical hearing him whine about it."

Laughing a bit as well, Hamuko laid down. "So what got you involved in this in the first place, then?" She was curious, but the way Yukari's eyes darkened and she frowned told Hamuko she had hit on a sensitive topic. "Takeba-chan?"

"... I've got my reasons for sticking around." Standing up, the brunet girl nodded and forced a smile onto her face. "Well, I should go let the senpai know you're up, and I think visiting hours will be done soon. Don't give the nurses too hard of a time!" And with that, she was gone. Frowning a bit at the other girl's unusual shift in attitude, Hamuko shook her head and laid down as a nurse came in to check on her.

* * *

_(Late night, Hospital)  
_A bright, obnoxious light hit Hamuko's eyes through her closed lids, making her swear as she rolled over and pulled a pillow over her head. "Go away. I don't want to deal with you guys right now." She muttered, voice muffled by the mattress. "Go find some pious priest and bless him or something."

Instead of dimming like she had hoped it would, the light instead grew brighter, piercing through the pillow. Muttering in irritation, the pink-haired girl sat up and glared. "WHAT, you feathered annoyances?!" She glared at her audience, frowning. "And turn off that light, will you? Or at least dim it? Don't want a doctor to come in here and have a heart attack from seeing you guys here. They might think I'm dying." When they didn't respond, she scowled. "Dammit, do ANY of you have a bit of understanding of humanity in your head? Freaking _angels ..." _

The angels assembled around her seemed unimpressed, but their apparent leader – a Dominion, if Hamuko wasn't mistaken – arched an eyebrow in amusement, his – he appeared male at the least – sharp gold eyes showing a flicker of some unusual emotion as he dimmed the radiance around him. "Your tongue is as sharp as always, sister of Cain." He commented, settling onto the chair beside Hamuko's bed.

"You're whats-it-el, right? Asskiss-el?" Crossing her arms, Hamuko frowned at him.

"Ciel, actually." Crossing one leg over the other, the Dominion gave Hamuko a wry smile. "WE sensed that power outburt that you emitted a fortnight ago and came to investigate. It would be most unfortunate if your brother had set you up to cause mass destruction."

"I was saving my life, you twat." Growling, the teenager brushed her hair out of her eyes. "For beings that claim to be all seeing, you certainly act about as intelligent as a preschooler."

Ciel arched an eyebrow, frowning. "You are fortunate I have restraint; most others of my ranking would have smote you for your lack of piety or general respect."

"Considering how you hound after me and my brother, can ya blame me?" Huffing, Hamuko frowned. "Look, again, I'm not trying to end the world. I like this stupid planet too much to kill all humanity, ya know? The few people who annoy me I can easily just kick in the groin and forget about them by the next day."

"And your brother?" Ciel arched another eyebrow.

"I'm not a mind-reader, good grief!" Slapping her forehead with the palm of her hand, Hamuko glared at Ciel; it was very hard to pick out through the bright glow of the other angels around him, but the Dominion's hair was a soft amber color, standing in sharp contrast to a neat, white and gold three-piece suit with a red tie. "Even if I was, reading the mind of a guy who's best friends with Loki wouldn't be healthy anyway."

"... Fair enough." Ciel's grimace made Hamuko laugh. "Knowing Loki, I can assume that anything brought up isn't as clear cut as it would be if Cain wasn't his lifelong companion."

"Wait, you've met Loki?"

"Regrettably." Shaking his head, Ciel nodded as one of the lesser angels whispered something in his ear. "Ah … very well." Nodding, he waved the angel back before giving Hamuko a smile that unnerved her. "Well, beloved sister of Cain, I must depart; another duty calls to me. However …" At this, Ciel's smile grew. "... Due to the circumstances surrounding you, it would be unwise to leave you without some form of supervision." Straightening, the Dominion pulled one of the lesser angels forward. "Therefore, Miriel here shall be serving as an embassy. "

Biting back a mental groan, Hamuko looked "Miriel" over as the angel seemed to blink, processing what Ciel had just announced. This angel's form was distinctly feminine, straight black hair cropped in a bob to frame bright scarlet eyes. Her robes were white and unadorned, marking her as a bottom-rung angel. As it was, she seemed lost and confused.

"What." When Miriel finally spoke, Hamuko did a double take. She sounded almost identical to Mitsuru. "Sire, are you certain there isn't an angel with more adequate experience to guard her?"

"You'll never get your own experience if you stay in Paradise, Miriel." Ciel pushed her next to Hamuko as he spoke. "Besides, if she truly does have peaceful goals, then you shouldn't have too much to concern you."

"Apart from living embodiments of human negativity." Miriel's tone was unimpressed. Blinking a bit at the statement, Hamuko went to open her mouth when the female angel turned to her and arched an eyebrow. "Besides, with the aura she is emitting, it would not fail to surprise me if Azarel or Sariel appeared at one point."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hamuko glowered at the angels. Ciel ignored her in favor of slowly beginning to fade, nodding at Miriel one last time.

"I believe you mean Azarel or Samael, Miriel; Sariel is too preoccupied with getting himself out of Makai at the moment to be much of a hindrance." As he all but vanished, one gold eye focused on Hamuko. "If I have discovered you have lied, then your punishment will not be kind." As his words echoed in the air, the Dominion was gone, a single glowing feather drifting to the floor.

Muttering curses under her breath, Hamuko glanced at Miriel. "Seriously though, turn down the light please; I'll go blind if I stare at you for much longer." Miriel huffed in response, but her glow diminished, and she set to hovering about the head of Hamuko's bed as the pink-haired girl laid down again. "So I'm stuck with you."

"Correct." Huffing a bit, Miriel settled on the headboard, her wings vanishing. "Why such security measures are being placed, I can't fathom. Humans are fairly ignorant and bumbl-!" Miriel was cut off as Hamuko, stretching, swatted her off of the headboard. Landing with a very undignified 'thud', the angel picked herself up and whirled around, a bolt of light forming in her hands.

"You know the moment my brother finds out you attacked me he'll send demons after you, right?" Hamuko muttered, rolling over. "It's why your boss wasn't hitting me at all." Like she had suspected, Miriel muttered something in what Hamuko figured was Yiddish before the light from her forming attack vanished. "So if we're stuck with one another, you're gonna get used to me arguing with you. For now, I'm going back to sleep. Do whatever you angels do in the night."

Smiling to herself as she heard Miriel's constant mutters of annoyance, the pink-haired teen drifted off to sleep. She would deal with having an angel stuck following her around in the morning … or better yet, in a couple days, after she had gotten things explained to her regarding what the hell was going on in Iwatodai.

* * *

(April 20th. Evening)  
Returning to the dorm the next day after school, Hamuko glared at the plush form Miriel had decided to take when around others. The angel had been quiet throughout school – mercifully so – but it stilled annoyed the pink-haired girl that she was stuck with her. Looking around once she entered the building, Hamuko was briefly surprised to see the first floor deserted before remembering that Yukari had told her the senpai wanted to meet with her on the fourth floor.

Making a quick detour on the third floor to drop her bag and Miriel off in her room, she scurried up the stairs, looking around when she reached the fourth floor. Apart from the mad dash to the roof, she had yet to visit this floor. Apart from the bathrooms, the only thing really there was a set of double doors to her right; the hallway to the left was blocked off, making her wonder as to what could be down that way. Biting her lip, she kept her curiosity in check as she walked over to the double doors and knocked.

To her surprise, Mitsuru answered the door, looking relieved. "Welcome back. I hope the stay at the hospital didn't alarm you too much, but it was done for safety. It wouldn't have been good if you had a concussion." Standing aside, Mitsuru let Hamuko in, making the girl gawp a bit. The room in front of her took up what had to be two thirds of the hall itself, and was lined on two walls with bookshelves packed full. The far wall had windows to the outside, and a small door seemed to lead to an adjacent room – or perhaps a broom closet. The fourth wall, however, hosted an enormous computer screen, a wardrobe beside it. In the center of the room was a table with a set of plush seats around it, one side of the table dominated by a large sofa. Ikutsuki was seated at the chair facing the door, Yukari to one side. Akihiko – his right side visibly bandaged – and Shinjiro took up seats on the sofa, and as Hamuko stared, Mitsuru walked over and sat on the sofa as well.

'Cripes, there's still enough room on that thing to fit five more people.' Sitting down in the chair across the table from Ikutsuki, Hamuko shifted a bit. "So … Why are we all gathered in here like this is a yakuza war room?"

"Well, it's good to see you're fine." Akihiko chuckled at that, nodding. "You had all of us worried when you just up and passed out like that." Shifting a bit, he winced, a hand going to his ribs. "Wish I could say I was that lucky."

"You're just lucky Mitsuru and I have enough sense to use Dia on you every night, otherwise you'd be stuck out of boxing for half of the year." Shinjiro muttered, earning a playful glower from Akihiko. Ikutsuki cut off any further talking by clearing his throat and focusing on Hamuko.

"But yes, the reason we called you here today." Nodding, the man pushed his glasses up his nose as he focused on Hamuko. "Tsukio-chan, would you believe me if I said there were more than twenty-five hours in a day?"

Eyebrow twitching a bit, Hamuko noted that she didn't like him calling her 'chan' at all. Opening her mouth, she intended to reply with a simple 'yes', but her mouth ran away on her.

"Yes I can believe it; what I can't believe is that you felt the need to ask that stupid of a question considering that fighting off a gigantic mutant monkey monster that feels like it walked out of a bar from Silent Hill or some sort of Lovecraftian horror is kind of hard to forget."

If there had been background music playing, Hamuko would have sworn she had said the line that would cue the awkward record scratch as everyone froze, staring at her. Ikutsuki seemed genuinely embarrassed, coughing and looking down. Yukari and Akihiko stared at her, mouths hanging open in pure shock. Mitsuru seemed to be just as surprised, but had the self dignity to restrain herself from following suit. Shinjiro, however … his head was bowed, but Hamuko could see his shoulders trembling; was he holding in _laughter? _

As it was, Mitsuru was the first to recover herself. "Fair enough. The circumstances were just so unusual in regards to you that we have nothing to go on apart from what we did with Takeba." Nodding, she brushed some of her scarlet hair behind her shoulders again. "The hidden hour between one day and the next, we call it the Dark Hour."

"... Why can't you just call it the Witching Hour like most people do?"

At that, Shinjiro make a strangled choking noise and hurried from the room. The doors had barely shut when the sound of laughter leaked into the room, making Hamuko blush a bit. She wasn't trying to be funny … Mitsuru seemed to take the snark in stride, however.

"Impressive; it's been a while since I've seen him pushed to that much laughter." Shaking her head, Mitsuru focused on Hamuko again. "And while your statement is valid, we have yet to encounter any witches within the Dark Hour, so calling it the Witching Hour is fairly non-indicative." Drumming her nails on the table, the redhead nodded. "However, we do fight Shadows."

"And those are …?" Hamuko scratched her head in confusion. "Do you mean the monkey thing or the blobby things that spawned after it got wiped off the face of the earth."

"Both, actually." Ikutsuki had recovered from his bout of embarrassment. "The large one was quite abnormal, but given the circumstances, it at least served the purpose of showing you that the Dark Hour is not exactly a good to place to _monkey _around in."

'Aaaaaaaaaaaaaand cue the second needle scratch.' Hamuko thought to herself, slapping her forehead with her palm so hard she feared she might bruise it. As it was, Yukari's face turned into one of pure disgust, and both of the present seniors shot Ikutsuki glares that could kill. The man still had the gall to sit there and smile. "I'm sorry, it just slipped out."

"Ugh, I'm sure there's month old ham that wasn't as bad as that pun." Yukari shook her head, face still grossed out.

"REGARDLESS." Mitsuru's voice took on a tone of annoyance, making Hamuko focus upon her once again. "This … might sound sudden, but the three of us – and Shinjiro, if he'll return from his laughing fit – are part of a group who fight the Shadows. We're known as the 'Specialized Extracurricular Execution Sector', or S.E.E.S for short."

"... The name was Ikutsuki-san's idea, wasn't it?" Hamuko slapped her forehead again. She could tell where someone would be able to make a mutlitude of puns with that acronym.

"Regrettably." Shinjiro stated as he re-entered, having calmed down a bit. Seeing the questioning looks he was getting, the brunet shrugged. "She's the only person to call out that glaringly stupid question, and your guys' faces were priceless." Sitting down next to Akihiko once again, he nodded. "Us seniors have been doing this shit for a few years now, but it looks like shit's gonna get serious."

"What he's asking in a roundabout way is if you'd join us." Mitsuru cut her classmate off. "It's treated like a paying job, and the Kirijo Group makes sure expenses are fully covered if, you choose to accept."

"It was almost a school club, but we couldn't figure out what to use as a cover story ..." Akihiko gave a small chuckle, amused. "Boy were we dumb."

Nodding, Hamuko let herself sink into thought. It would be dangerous, obviously; goodness knows what would happen if the monkey-Shadow was the weakest of the strong. And who knew if that black thing that had ripped itself out of Eurydice's skull – if Igor had named it, she didn't remember – would try that stunt again. It would be fatal to her school years if she kept blacking out every ten days or so.

However … thinking over the conversation she had with Igor while unconscious, she remembered what he had said; it was possible for her to get stronger than this, if she took the effort to move forward and do some training. And the "Social Link" concept puzzled her.

On top of THAT, there was the fact that Naoya had somehow figured something like this would happen. It was the only way she could explain how her COMP had been programmed to kick in when it had. Perhaps not a Persona, but the coding for whatever he installed on there was malleable enough for it to adjust itself to accommodate said Persona. 'I so need to kick his ass for not giving me a warning about it though.' Shaking her head a bit, Hamuko bit her lip.

"... I'll do it." At this, she paused for a moment. "... But do I have to use one of those guns Takeba-chan was using?"

"Normally, yes, since the 'gun' is the Evoker used to summon a Persona." Mitsuru nodded her head. "However … you don't seem to requite it." Holding up Hamuko's COMP as she spoke, she gave her a polite smile. "When we reached the rooftop, you were unconscious, and this had returned to credits for a game. We've spent parts of the past several days trying to detect the source, but to no such luck. The security password you have set up baffles us all."

"That's the point of 'em." Hamuko laughed, taking the bright orange gaming system back. "Well, guess I'll have to be very careful to keep this charged then. I don't want to see what happens if the battery dies in the middle of summoning." Checking it over to make sure nothing had been broken, Hamuko lifted her head to see Mitsuru extending a red armband in her direction. "Oh, thank you ..."

"I was so worried you'd say no ..." Yukari's obvious relief started Hamuko, making her turn to look at the other junior. Making eye contact, the brunet gave a small laugh. "What? It's weird being the only junior in a group full of seniors."

"Heh, welcome aboard, Tsukio." Akihiko chuckled a bit, Shinjiro just nodding from his seat as well. Blushing a bit, Hamuko turned to them and smiled back, relaxing. Mitsuru seemed just as relieved as Yukari, but was keeping it to herself for some reason. Ikutsuki was smiling as well, but there seemed to be something off about it … Shaking her head, Hamuko gave them a wry grin to try and ease the mood.

"Heh, better hope I don't let you guys down."

Out of nowhere, Hamuko heard a crack, and the world seemed to freeze. Yipping a bit, she stared as a card materialized before her. Like the card Eurydice had been on within the Velvet Room, this one had the same blue and white mask motif on one side. The other side boasted a picture of a man with a traveler's sack over one shoulder, a dog at his heels, with the number Zero resting beneath the image in a pale blue frame.

"_**Thou art I … And I am Thou … Thou hast established a new Bond...  
Thou shalt be blessed when creating Personae of the Fool Arcana ..." **_

Blinking a bit as the card shattered, dust settling over the four students with her, Hamuko shook her head to try and look normal when time resumed itself. Was that what Igor had meant by a Social Link? 'Guess I'll have to get used to that noise …' Sushing herself at the thought, Hamuko looked to Shinjiro at his snort.

"Tch, trust us, that'll take a lot; you're just starting out, so we ain't expecting too much."

"Gee thanks, Senpai." Laughing a bit, Hamuko shook her head. "That's a real vote of confidence. "

"I'm being serious; you should've seen how Aki and I kept tripping over ourselves when we first started." Giving her a wry smile, he stood up. "Anyway, it's about time for dinner. Gimme a moment to get something simple started."

"Shinji, something _simple _with you normally takes about an hour to cook." Akihiko groaned.

"Good; that means you'll all eat." Shooting his last remark over his shoulder, Shinjiro left. Akihiko let out a shout and followed after him, resulting in a chuckle from Mitsuru.

"Don't worry too much about him; part of Shinjiro's pay comes from the fact that I asked him to cook for our group." Standing up as she spoke, the female senior nodded at Hamuko with a soft smile. "But thank you, Tsukio-san. It's a relief to know there's another ally in our midst." Not giving the younger girl a chance to respond, she left.

"... Something about the way she said that worries me." Hamuko admitted, looking at Yukari.

"Same here," the brunet shrugged. "I've only been here for a couple of weeks myself, so I wouldn't know. Mr. Chairman?" Both girls looked at Ikutsuki, who frowned a bit.

"Let's just say that things were dicey when it was just the three senpai." The man nodded. "None of them like to discuss it much." Nodding in understanding, Hamuko and Yukari stood up. "Go ahead and enjoy dinner, alright? I have some paperwork to do, then I'll have to inform the higher ups about you joining us, Tsukio-san. Have Shinjiro-kun bring me up food when it's ready, okay?"

Nodding, the two girls left, Yukari relaxing soon after they left the room. "Seriously, I'm glad you joined up." the brunet smiled at Hamuko, hazel eyes soft for once. "I really wasn't happy not having anyone to talk to, you know?"

"I know how that feels." Hamuko nodded. "C'mon, let's go pester Shinjiro-senpai until dinner's ready."

"I'll pass; Akihiko-senpai says he'll throw knives if he gets too irritated when cooking." Shaking her head, the pink-clad girl smiled. "I'll go work on some homework instead until food's ready."

"Okay." Nodding, Hamuko waited for her to leave before opening up her COMP. Getting past the security password, she waited for the screen to load. Like before, the golden butterfly was in the one corner. "Hmmm ..." Biting her lower lip, Hamuko tapped it.

This time, it reacted.

The screen flashed white for a moment before revealing a new screen, this one the same blue shade of the Velvet Room – Hamuko decided that she would refer to the shade from now on as Velvet Blue. Eurydice dominated the top screen, floating and staring out of the COMP at Hamuko, with a series of butterfly shaped icons on the touch screen. Two of them were lit up, making her look; one of them glowed bright orange, and tapping it once showed 'ペルソナ'.

'Okay, I can access Personae from there.' Nodding to herself, she looked to the other lit up one; on it she could see that same blue and white mask as the Tarot Cards that decided to show up when she made social links. 'And I bet this one is the Social links …' Double tapping it, Hamuko smiled as the screen changed, showing the two links she had. The Fool Card appeared as it had just moments ago, but the next link she had – Devil – shone with a bright pink light.

**Fool: Rank 1 – Takeba Yukari, Kirijo Mitsuru, Sanada Akihiko, Aragaki Shinjiro. Party members can aid a fallen member up after scoring a critical hit.**

**Devil: Rank 10, Max – Tsukio Naoya. Thou hast unlocked Hari-Hara from the sea of thy soul**

Laughing at the sight of it, Hamuko shook her head. Of COURSE Naoya was the one she had formed a bond so strong with already; he was her closest friend, reincarnation of the first murderer or not. "Hehe, well, Big bro … Wish me luck." Smiling, she turned off her COMP and ran downstairs, curious to see what's cooking.

* * *

_**Translation Notes: **The Katakana used in this chapter, "ペルソナ", is translated as "Persona". While most Nintendo DS/3DS games are bilingual in some places, the system menus themselves are often one language only, with the option to switch between them. Since the way Persona is used in-game wouldn't make sense to write with whatever Kanji translates to "an emotional mask", the katakana used above is much more practical. That and it's a Western-based word. _

* * *

**_Starwing's Notes: _**_Well, sorry this chapter took so long, but as you can see, it's the longest one thusfar, and my college classes have started up again. I'll try to keep things going at a steady clip from now on, though, keyword being TRY. I make no promises. With that, onto the few story notes I have to give. _

_-The angels are a nod to Devil Survivor, as well as most mainstream Shin Megami Tensei games. They are not necessarily evil, but as ascended beings who reside in paradise, they tend to have sticks up their asses and worship Jehova above all else. I personally have no stigma one way or the other with angels, seeing as I was raised in a Christain household. I'm just going with the way they are presented in the main SMT series. On top of that, Naoya is the reincarnation of Cain; for those not fully on the up and up with research, Cain is the first recorded murderer, having slain his brother Abel out of jealousy. (Hence the trope Cain and Abel.) So with Hamuko - his little sister here - putting out so much energy, it seemed plausible the angels would want to keep a close eye on her. _

_-While Ikutuski's question about there being more than twenty-five hours in a day would work on people who suffered memory loss in the Dark Hour, with Hamuko (and the players for those of us who play the games) it's just a downright stupid question to ask. How the hell could a person forget fighting off mutated blobs of black raspberry jam? _

_-The Witching Hour is a commonly referenced phenomena where folklore claims that a hidden hour exists, and that is when the witches of the world come out and cast their magic. (Or something similar, the finer details vary from culture to culture.) In the West, it supposedly occurs at three in the morning, whereas in Japan, it happens at Midnight. Hence why so many of the supernatural events in Persona take place at Midnight; it's the Witching Hour. _

_-And seriously, what the HELL was the cover story for S.E.E.S.'s club activities in canon?! It's not like they could write down "battling the physical manifestation of humanity's collective, unconscious negativity in a hidden hour of the day" on a sheet of paper and turn it into the principal. They'd get locked up in a mental hospital. _

_... Also I make no further promises about not being a complete smartass in my footnotes. There are several points in this game where I bang my head against the wall going "WHAT.", and I am going to make sure you know what moments those are. _

_Until chapter six then, toodles!_

**_PS: There is a motif going on with the chapter titles. I will not reveal what it is until someone in the comments points it out~_**


	6. Apparitions Stalk the Night

_(April 21, Morning) _

"_Yurameku yoru no iro, Mijikai ku kousa shite, Ka wasu gurasu no oto, Tada su keru koraaju, __Ikutsuka no kisetsu ga Meguri mata te o furu Nagareru hibi no iro Kono basho de tokeau~" _Walking up to school the next morning as she listened to her music, Hamuko smiled to herself. She had gotten a fair whallop of the make-up work she had needed to do done, and the weather outside today was night. She knew she was probably getting stared at by classmates, but at this point, she didn't care. "_Iwaimashou kono jikan o~" _Spinning in place a bit, she kept singing, unaware of someone coming up behind her. "_Utau yoru mo kage mo Hakanaku soshite utsukushiku Maji warusono koe wa Kono utage no tame -" _

"Hehe, Luna-tan, good to see you're feeling better!" Yipping a bit, Hamuko looked to her left; Junpei grinned at her, holding onto one of her headphones. "So … You ever play any of the games, or you just a fan of the fanbase?_"_ He asked, dropping the headphone he was holding.

"Pff, I lack the skills to play those games, Junpei-kun. I just love the music and the remixes thereof." Smiling, the pink-haired girl grinned at her friend. "And what's got you in such great spirits, Junpei-kun?" True, he was normally bouncy, but something in particular seemed to have gotten to him, as he was almost floating off of the ground.

Junpei's grin widened even more at that. "Hehe, I'm not allowed to tell, but it's so awesome." He grinned more, darting off before Hamuko could question him more.

"Hey, that's mean~!" Hamuko pouted as she darted after him. "Don't tease a girl with information she can't haaaaaaaaaaaave!" Laughing a bit, she smiled, glad to be back in some semblance of normality. "Junpei you butthead get back here so I can kick your butt in Pocket Monsters!"

"Ah c'mon Luna-tan, you know I'd win … again."

"I beat Shioran, you don't know that for sure!"

"Yes I do." Junpei was laughing when Hamuko caught up to him, making the pink-haired girl playfully slug him in the arm as she caught her breath, laughing herself. Grinning as the warning bell rang, both of them darted upstairs to class, making small talk and joking around. Hamuko noticed some stares on the way up, but she ignored them. A small part of her wondered what they were staring at, but it probably didn't matter in the long run … And she'd worry about the people she heard whispering at a later time.

As it was, Toriumi was happy to see her turn in a large chunk of the homework – including all of the work that had been missed for Ekoda's class – and after making sure that the pink-haired girl was well, went about the class as normal. From the sound of it, she hadn't missed anything too important apart from 'student council elections', whatever they were. Junpei remained awake throughout class – for once – and the day was uneventful until lunch.

Retreating to the roof – as one of Junpei's friends had pulled him aside – Hamuko sat down with her bento, pulling out her COMP. A couple of girls were also up on the roof – one of them with long, raven black hair and red eyes, and the second with wavy blonde hair – chatting. Checking her email, Hamuko decided to listen in on what they were talking about.

"So, yeah, apparently Sanada-senpai bruised a couple ribs." The blonde girl's tone was rough, chowing down on what looked like mushroom ramen. "From the sound of it he twisted and fell down on something."

"Pff, Kiri-chan, I doubt it," Her black-haired companion snorted, taking a sip of a can that read Cielo Mist. "Sanada-senpai's the boxing champion, it would take a LOT for him to lose balance. I bet he and Aragaki-senpai were whaling on one another and got carried away." The blonde one just shrugged.

"Eh, who knows, Rei-Rei," Taking a sip of her own drink, the blonde spotted Hamuko nearby. "Oi, You're the new girl, aren't you?" She asked, making Hamuko lift her head in surprise in the middle of replying to an email that she'd gotten from Atsuro asking her a few things about basic trigonometry. "Yeah, you are. Rei-rei and I here were just wondering if you knew what happened to Sanadai-senpai's ribs, seeing as how you live in the sam- OW!" Cut off as the raven-haired girl whapped her off the back of the head, the blonde pouted.

"Honestly, Kiri-chan, would it kill you to show some manners?" She muttered before looking at Hamuko. "Sorry about her; she has brothers." Ignorning the mutters, she nodded. "But we are curious; do you know? Or is he as stand-offish at the dorms as he is with his horde of fangirls?"

'… Sanada-senpai has fangirls? I thought that only happened in anime …' Shaking her head, Hamuko gave the two girls a smile. "No, he's actually a very nice person. But as for his ribs … Yeah, I do think he and Aragaki-senpai got tangled up in a spar or something. Why?"

"Because he's griping that he's out of the ring until May." Kiri-chan seemed amused. "Good thing we don't have any meets until June then, and it give the coach a chance to get the rest of the team trained up to match the 'Golden Boy'." Rei-rei merely shook her head at that, returning to her food. Amused at both of the other girls, Hamuko went back to her COMP, their conversation a soft sort of background music.

Answering the emails she had gotten from her extended family, Hamuko blinked when she saw an email from Naoya at the bottom of the list. Curious, she opened it up.

"_**So it seems things went about as well as I expected. Loki and I will be there on the twenty-fourth."**_

Not liking how cryptic that statement sounded, Hamuko sent her own email.

"_**When you get here you better tell me what the hell you did to my COMP. Also, F.Y.I -"**_

_'Your vocabulary is atrocious and unfitting of a young woman.'_

Yipping a bit in shock, Hamuko glared down at her COMP as a chibified image of Miriel appeared onto the touch screen where she was typing. 'What the hell are you doing in there!?' Hissing mentally, Hamuko began rapidly poking the angel with her stylus. 'Go away! I'm just letting him know I'm alright miss paranoid!'

_'I do hope you realize that's only giving me a headache.' _Miriel attempted to swat at the stylus through the screen, a frown on her face. Her voice was somehow managing to come through the speakers, even if it was too quiet for the other two girls to hear. _'And I am aware that your current correspondence is 'shooting the breeze', but you've been so absorbed in your communications I haven't been able to announce my presence. I managed to merge with the data inside of this machine last night while you were asleep.'_

'… I wonder if anti-virus would get her out of there ….' Sighing and deleting the email when she heard the end of lunch bell, Hamuko glowered down at her COMP and Miriel inside of it. 'Guess I'll just show her to Naoya when he gets here.' Closing the COMP up and sticking it in her pocket, the pink-haired girl had almost made it back to class when her ears rang.

_'… I beg your pardon, but what in the name of the levels of Paradise is an 'anti-virus'?'_

Groaning, Hamuko flopped down into her seat and took a nap; of _course _the angel she was stuck with could read her mind, wasn't that just _peachy._

* * *

_(Dorm, Evening)_

Hamuko had managed to finish up the last of her make-up homework and recharged her COMP – Miriel had been mercifully quiet for the rest of class, perhaps realizing the girl was studying – when she heard a knock on her door. Opening it up, she was surprised to spot Yukari. "Hey!" Smiling, the pink-clad girl glanced down the hall. "The senpai want to meet us downstairs; from the sound of it, they have something to discuss with us about S.E.E.S buisness."

"Oh, okay." Nodding in understanding, Hamuko grabbed her COMP and the red armband, stowing both in a pocket before grabbing her parasol and following Yukari downstairs. Sure enough, all three senpai were standing there, waiting for them. "What's up?" Looking around, Hamuko smiled for a moment before Akihiko chuckled.

"Hold on just one sec; there's someone I want you to meet." At the silver-haired male's words, a thumping noise came from outside of the dorm, making Akihiko turn to it. "Hey, hurry up, alright?"

"I'm trying!" The muffled voice sounded somewhat famliar … "This stuff's heavy …!" A few moments of muffled swearing and thumping later, the double doors to the dorm opened … to reveal Junpei wheeling in a dolly full of suitcases and boxes. Grinning as he parked the dolly, the lanky teen grinned. "Wassup?"

"HE'S staying HERE!?" Yukari's shocked cry fell on deaf ears as Hamuko squealed in delight, tackling Junpei in a hug. "But WHY!?"

"He has the potential." Akihiko chuckled, amused by the two younger teens laughing and hugging next to him. "I Found him a couple of days ago in the Dark Hour, hiding and freaking out from the shadows."

"Yeah, he found me crying like a baby at the convenience store." Junpei laughed in embarrassment as he confirmed the senior's statement. "So when he told me about you guys, I jumped on the chance. Good to see at least Luna-tan's stoked to see me." Grinning and giving Hamuko a one-armed hug, the capped junior grinned. "What about you, Yuka-tan?"

"Well, it's nice to have another teammate ..." Sighing a touch in defeat, the brunet girl lifted her head. "And when did you start calling her Luna-tan?!"

"Yuka-tan, he's been calling me that since day one." Hamuko laughed more.

"Oh don't you start too!"

"Heh, well, good to see you three all know one another." Akihiko was even more amused than he was at the start, and Shinjiro seemed to be entertained as well. Mitsuru let a smile cover her face briefly before clearing her throat, making the younger trio stop in their tracks and turn to her.

"It's nice to see you all getting along so well, but we do have business tonight." Standing up as she handed Junpei a briefcase – which turned out to contain a red armband and Evoker for him as well – Mitsuru brushed her hair behind her shoulder as well. "For the longest time, it was just us seniors working in the Dark Hour. With the number doubled, it was decided it would be safe to go back 'there'."

"There?" All three juniors looked to one another in confusion, before each of them glanced at a senior in confusion.

"Yeah, 'there' … Tartarus." Akihiko's face split into a feral grin at the last word.

"... What's that? Tartarus?" Junpei's face twisted into confusion. "It sounds like … a type of toothpaste."

"Really? I thought he said tartar sauce … like we got to go to a seafood restaurant." Hamuko blinked as well, equally confused.

"... I am so glad the chairman ain't here. He'd be laughing his ass off." Shinjiro shook his head, slapping the palm against his brow. "But I can't say I blame you; my first reaction was also 'tartar sauce', not gonna lie."

"So … what is Tartarus?" Yukai asked Mitsuru, making the redhead chuckle.

"I think it's best if we showed it to you instead of explaining." Giving a mysterious chuckle, she nodded at Junpei. "Iori, did you happen to get a weapon of choice picked out?"

"... Would a bat with a spike driven through it count?" Junpei pulled out the bat as he spoke, showing it was made out of aluminum with what could only be an iron tent stake driven through the fat end. Seeing the confused looks he got, the teen shrugged. "Eh, my dad was drunk and stupid one night; thought the bat was trying to kill him. I brought it with me so he didn't do something even more stupid with it."

"Well, that should work for tonight. We can get you a more suitable weapon before the next trip." Turning onto Akihiko, Mitsuru frowned. "And Akihiko? You're still on the bench until your ribs heal. Even with Shinjiro and I working on you, it will take you another month before you're combat ready again."

"Don't I know it … the coach is less than thrilled." Groaning, Aikihiko shook his head. "Come on, we should head out … Shinji, where'd you store the rest of the stuff?" Turning to the brunet, the seniors both slapped their foreheads when Shinjiro reached behind the sign-in counter to pull out a bow and quiver of arrows to hand to Yukari, before pulling out what could have only been a war hammer.

"Tch, not like we were going to go back upstairs." Grinning, the senior slung the weapon over his shoulder. "C'mon, time for the baby birdies to get a test flight."

'… Miriel? Take a mental note,' Sighing as she contacted the angel, Hamuko stared at the large weapon in worry as the group left the dorm, Mitsuru locking the door behind them. '… remind me to never get on Shinjiro-senpai's bad side. He's wielding that thing with one hand.'

_'Duly noted.'_

'Okay yeah … you and Mitsuru-senpai sound too much alike; it's creepy.'

* * *

"THIS is what you guys meant!?" Junpei waved his arms around in confusion as the group reached their destination … of Gekkoukan High School. The gateway to the high school itself was locked, and the lighting was dim. There didn't seem to be any trace of security personnel, and the seniors all seemed relaxed. "This is our school! Yeah, I mean, I know school sucks and all that, but still, don't you think claiming it's the Shadow's nest is a touch overkill?"

Sighing in agreement, Hamuko tugged her armband over her left bicep, like she saw Yukari and the seniors do so earlier. The most they had gotten out of the seniors was that this 'Tartarus' place was the nest for the Shadows, and it was where they all seemed to spawn from. It sounded like the seniors themselves hadn't gotten very far in it themselves, but when they were asked why, none of them answered.

"Just wait until midnight." Akihiko bopped Junpei lightly on the head, nodded at the school. "You've got about a half minute until then." Leaning against the fence, the silver-haired male let out a chuckle. "The three of us only got up a few floors, so we really don't know what it's like inside. But you'll be in for a show when the Dark Hour starts."

At that point, Hamuko swore that Akihiko possessed some sort of world-altering power, for the moment his sentence ended was when the Dark Hour started. Wincing a bit as the lighting shifted into the harsh monochrome she was used to, the pink-haired girl felt the earth shaking beneath her. Lifting her head, she felt herself staring as the school itself seemed to shake and warp. Parts of the building sank into the ground, while other parts rose into the air and began twisting themselves into a tower. Pieces of the elementary and middle school campuses seemed to join in as well, the faint sound of a bell echoing in the air as the end result eventually stood before them. An immense, twisted tower that stretched up to the waning moon, a mockery of the technology and electricity that it was built of.

"What the hell just happened to our _school!?" _Junpei and Hamuko spun around together as they spoke, pointing at the tower.

"That would be Tartarus." Mitsuru gave a nod, pulling out a key to open the main gate. "Why only the school campus is affected this way by the Dark Hour, we don't fully understand." Giving Akihiko a sharp glare, perhaps to further discourage him from trying to sneak along with the rest of the group, the redhead lead the way to the main entrance of Tartarus. The doorway was decorated with a pair of bulls heads, the handles being the innermost horns. Pulling the doors open, Mitsuru stood aside to reveal a spacious interior as the rest of the group piled in.

The first floor looked nothing like their school. Large, it tapered off into a cathedral topping, a gigantic staircase in the center of the room demanding full attention as it lead up into a door made of clockwork pieces. A smaller clock, glowing with a golden light, stood off to one side of the staircase, and Hamuko thought a second door was hidden in the gloom beneath the main staircase, but it was hard to tell. The rest of the room seemed to glow in of itself, the lighting softer than the harshness outside.

"I'll remain here and give you surveillance." Mitsuru's voice cut through Hamuko's thoughts, making her turn as the female senior handed her a communicator. Taking it, Hamuko listened. "You, Takeba and Iori shall be going up to the first floor tonight; potentially the second floor, depending on how well you do and how much time we have"

"By ourselves?!" Yukari's eyes widened.

"Nope; you're stuck with me." Shinjiro grinned from where he stood, leaning against a strange gold and green device. When the three juniors just glanced at him in horror, he flashed them a grin that showed teeth. "What? You think we're irresponsible enough to send you guys up there on your own, as green as you are, without a babysitter?"

"Shinjiro, stop scaring them." Mitsuru shook her head as she helped Junpei adjust the holster to hold his Evoker.

"I'd be with you guys as well normally." Akihiko laughed at that, shaking his head. "As it is, we're going to have to appoint a leader."

"You mean Aragaki-senpai won't lead?" Hamuko blinked, glancing at the senior.

"Tch, the only thing I'm good at leading is a bunch of dogs." Shrugging, Shinjiro continued discussing things with the other seniors as Hamuko began wandering around the lobby, only to jolt as she saw a blue door decorated with butterflies appear a short distance away from the golden clock. Curious – as the Velvet Key was lighting up like a beacon – she went to it, drawing the Key out and putting it in the doorknob.

Like she had suspected, the door lead to the Velvet Room. "Hello?" She called out, looking around, and blinked when she realized she was facing the back of Igor's chair.

"Ah, you return. Please, sit down; we won't take up any of your time." Igor called to her, making Hamuko nod as she walked over and sat in her usual chair. "Time stands still in here as well in this hour; your friends won't even notice your disappearance. I just wish to take this time to fully inform you of the role I shall be performing for you."

Nodding in understanding, Hamuko gripped her skirt. "Yeah, fair enough … Nobody else even seemed to see the door."

"Only those who have signed the contract can see the Velvet Room, let alone enter it." Nodding, Igor's hands folded up once more. "As for what we do here … I am in charge of Persona Fusion." Flashing Hamuko his trademark grin, Igor nodded as Theodore came to stand next to him. "As you acquire more Personae, and your Social Links grow and multiply, you will need to fuse exiting Personae together to give rise to new ones. A single memory card can only hold so much ..." Nodding at the pocket where Hamuko's COMP was stored, Igor continued, "especially since you have an angel within there as well. I don't believe it is within my power to use her within a fusion."

"Okay, so if supernatural forces don't work, I'm just gonna try an anti-virus to see if that helps." Hamuko sighed, shaking her head. "If not, well, I'll live … somehow."

"It wouldn't be very good if you died, now would it?" Igor chuckled once again. "There would be much paperwork for me to fill out, and explaining things to master Philemon why I did not interfere to save a valued guest would be quite awkward indeed." The grin seemed to grow at Hamuko's giggle, and he nodded to Theodore. The young male cleared his throat with a cough, catching Hamuko's attention, and held out a large book for her to examine.

"This, Imoto-sama, is the Compendium." He explained, gold eyes soft. "It is a place for us in the Velvet Room to record the Personae you have summoned and fused, in case you ever exceed the amount you are able to carry with you at any one time. If you have any need to view it, please, speak to me and I will let you look it over."

Nodding, Hamuko examined the tome's cover. It boasted a similar pattern to the door, with an ornate sun stamped onto the front instead of a diamond. "Okay … so I just pop in here when I need to get some Personas fused together?"

"Precisely; there will be times where I'm not available, but the door will be locked more often than not when that occurs." Igor nodded. "If not, well … who knows what may happen? Perhaps there might be someone else in here to … attend to you." Giving her another nod, he chuckled. "For now, however, you should return to your friends, lest you forget your purpose."

"Alright then." Nodding, Hamuko stood up with a smile. "I'll pop by again when I get the time, so take care." Giggling, she began walking to the door. "I would like to meet Elizabeth at some point, though. I hope I manage to catch her someday." Hearing what she could only assume was an amused chuckle from one of the two, she stepped out of the room back into Tartarus's lobby.

"So, we're all in agreement, then?" Mitsuru's comment made Hamuko start, as all three senpai turned to her on cue. They hadn't noticed her disappearance, it seemed, but they had definitely noticed her wandering about. "Tsukio-san, we would like you to be the field leader."

"WH-wha?!" Yelping a bit, Hamuko shook her head as she registered the information.

"Hehe, what's the matter, Luna-tan? Why are you turning into a zombie on us?" Junpei laughed as he walked over to her, draping an arm over her shoulder. "But think about it, Luna-tan, you're a natural fit! We're fighting evil by moonlight, you're "Tsukio", and you've even got the pink hair! If we're not blasting our way through the dungeon in no time with the power of love, I'll be very shocked."

Hamuko couldn't help but laugh at that. "Oh dear, please tell me you're the cat and not someone like Sailor Mercury, Junpei; I'm already getting weird mental images from just that."

"... I don't think I want to know." Yukari groaned at that, shaking her head.

Giggling more, Hamuko nodded. "But okay, sure, I'll take care of things … but why me? I know Aragaki-senpai said he wasn't good with leadership, and I doubt the rest of you were running on Bishoujo Senshi logic like Junpei was."

"It's because we know you can summon easily, without hesitation." Akihiko picked up the explanation, drawing his Evoker and putting it at his left temple. "It's a life or death situation if you hesitate when summoning." The tone of his voice was serious, and a complete change from his normally easygoing manner. Hamuko found it unnerving and just nodded in understanding.

"And if shit does get hairy in there, that's what I'm going with you guys for." Shinjiro nodded, walking over. "Granted, I'm not gonna do ALL the work for you guys; it ain't training if someone takes care of all the trouble without giving you guys an honest try at it." Looking at the senior, Hamuko blinked; unlike the rest of the senpai, he didn't seem to have the gun-shaped Evoker, but there seemed to be a chain hanging out of his uniform blazer's pocket. Seeing the look she was giving him, the brunet shrugged. "And don't worry; I can summon just as well as Aki and Mitsuru can. I just can't stand guns, so I don't use the standard."

"In my defense, that was only made in that shape to get Akihiko's attention." Mitsuru shook her head, a wry smile crossing her face at Akihiko's blush. "In any case, it would be best if the four of you went on ahead now; we only have an hour to explore here, so it's best not to waste time." Nodding at the redhead's words, Hamuko walked towards the stairs, twisting her parasol into the battle-ready position she had had it in the night the large Shadow had attacked the dorm. Junpei and Yukari were a few steps behind her, and Shinjiro took up the rear.

Stepping through the clockwork doorway, Hamuko blinked in shock; NOW she recognized the school's hallways, all of them cast over with that familiar, harsh lighting. It was subdued now that they had some form of window between them and the outside world, but it was still hard to see and walk around. "Geeze … when did I decide to walk into a Project Zero game?" Rubbing at her red eyes, Hamuko looked behind her as the others came up behind her.

"_Can you all read me?" _Mitsuru's voice in her communicator made her double take, thinking it was Miriel at first, but Hamuko nodded and pressed the button on the device in her ear.

"Yeah, Mitsuru-senpai, I've got you." Looking around as she hefted her parasol, Hamuko began walking quietly. "Cripes, we're gonna have to look alive for the Shadows in this lighting." Rubbing her eyes as she waited for them to adjust , she glanced back at the three who had followed her. The bright red armbands were the first things she noticed, and with Shinjiro and Junpei, were more or less the only things she could see of them right now. Yukari's bright pink cardigan stood out like a beacon, and Hamuko could see her trembling.

"Dude … horror games have nothing on this ..." Junpei nodded from behind her, hefting the bat in his hands and the small group began walking quietly through the halls.

"This … I didn't think the inside would be this bad …" Yukari whimpered. "It feels nothing like the school ..." Biting her lip as she kept herself closer to Hamuko, Yukari looked around and whimpered a bit as she heard a noise skittering around behind her. "W-what was that?"

"Me, Takeba." Shinjiro nodded, looking around the floor himself.

Hamuko kept herself in the lead, listening intently to Mitsuru as the female senior ran down some basic combat rules by her. It was the standard stuff one would hear for a Role-playing game's battle tutorial, but actually hearing it being relayed to her in real life was disconcerting. Eyes glancing around, she blinked and focused a bit as a hint of blue caught the corner of her eye. Holding up a hand, she glanced back at Junpei and Yukari. "There's a small group of Shadows up ahead. Mitsuru-senpai's saying that it would be best to catch them off guard, so let's see if we can sneak up on them from behind."

Receiving a couple of nods from the other two, Hamuko slipped up behind the amorphous black shape. Like she had thought, it was almost indistinguishable for the shadows in the corridor, but when hit with the bright white light from the outside world, it stood out like a sore thumb. The blue of its mask was almost washed out, but it was still visible. Biting her lip, Hamuko swung, the blades that made up her parasol hitting the Shadow.

Screeching from the hit, the Shadow split apart, a couple separate blobs forming smaller versions of the original Shadow. All three masked faces turned to Hamuko as Junpei ran up to stand beside her, Yukari a few paces behind as she strung her bow. Shinjiro stood at the ready a good distance away, watching them to make sure the situation went well.

Balancing her parasol, Hamuko dug into her pocket and pulled out the COMP. Like she had thought, the screen was back to Velvet Blue, Eurydice raring to go. "Okay, let's go!" Pressing the A button, the pink-haired girl grinned as the supernatural marionette appeared above her in a flare of blue fire, slamming her lyre down onto the blob Shadow closest to her. It didn't seem to like the hit at all, but it was still clearly ready for a fight. "Drat. Junpei, Yukari-san! Mitsuru-senpai mentioned weaknesses to me, see if one of you two can summon and figure it out!"

"Gotcha, Luna-tan!" Junpei grinned, blocking an attack from one of the Shadows with his bat before shoving it away a good distance. When he was sure he had enough clearance, he reached down and pulled the Evoker out of the holster and placed it against his temple. The same blue fire Hamuko now recognized very well from summoning flared up around him as he did so, and Junpei grinned. "Watch me in action!"

When he pulled the trigger, the sound of shattering glass was heard, and something fast and blue shot through one of the shadows that was weakened, cutting it in half. The next second, it reappeared above Junpei's head, revealing itself as a humanoid shape clad in blue, with ornate golden wings coming from a golden helmet and attaching its hands and feet to one another.

"Dude, that was awesome!" Laughing a bit, Junpei grinned and yelped, barely raising his bat in time to block a charging Shadow coming up on him while his Persona vanished. An arrow got the creature from behind, showing that Yukari was still taking aim and fighting, even though Hamuko could see her legs shaking from where she stood. "Well, I don't think cutting them in half is doing much more damage, Luna-tan." Junpei called as he hit the attacker upside his head.

"Alright then, let's try this." Glancing down at Eurydice, Hamuko grinned and hit an option on the touch screen. "Eurydice! Agi!" The marionette appeared once more, strumming her lyre instead of using it as a bludgeon. The shadow that had decided to turn its attention towards Yukari was hit with gold and pink fire, making it screech and fall over. "Okay, there we go!" Grinning, she repeated the action, fully disorienting the creature enough for Yukari to shoot it through an eye slot of the mask.

Nodding in satisfaction, the two girls watched as Junpei took care of the one fighting him, all three Shadows vanishing into plumes or red and black smoke. "Wow … That was a lot more intense than I thought it would be." The black-haired teen admitted, adjusting his baseball cap. "Good thing you saw them before they saw us, Luna-tan. That would have hurt ..."

"It looks like one of them scratched you anyway, Iori." Shinjiro stepped forward from his nearby spot. Giving Takeba a look, he pointed at the wound on Junpei's arm, where a small red stain was forming. "You want to be careful; Shadows can somehow bypass clothing when fighting. The three of us have never figured out how or why, but the best Mitsuru can come up with is 'magic'." Yukari nodded in understanding, stepping forward and putting a hand on the stain, green light covering her hands. "It's nice not to worry about damaged uniforms though, so I ain't complaining too much. It does make it harder to tell how bad the damage is though."

Hamuko tuned out the conversation as her COMP binged at her. Worried that her battery might be running low – who knew how much battery power summoning took – she blinked to see a series of the cards from the Velvet Room spinning around in front of her eyes on the touch screen. Confused, she hit one, and the spinning stopped. The cards she hadn't selected disappeared, and the one she had hit floated up to the top screen before turning around. The picture on the card showed a miniature woman in a blue leotard and thigh high boots, short red hair revealing pointed ears, and a set of delicate wings grew from her back.

_**Pixie has emerged from the seal of thy soul!**_

'So that's how I get new Personae, huh?' Arching an eyebrow, Hamuko watched as the butterfly that corresponded to the Personae flashed a bit. Deciding to hit it, she blinked a bit to see two out of five slots filled on the touch screen, the one for Eurydice having a lock icon beside it. Off to one side of the main list was a strange diamond shaped icon, prompting Hamuko to tap it.

Much to her shock, Miriel appeared.

'... You're treated as a Persona?'

_'Regrettably.' _The angel seemed to sigh, an eyebrow twitching at the way Hamuko grinned in response. _'This was the only part of the programming that I was able to keep myself stable in, so I – You did NOT just press the 'active Persona' button.'_

'Oh yes I did.' Closing the COMP before Miriel could get an attempt to stop her, Hamuko stowed it away before shaking her head. Yukari was done healing now, and all three of the others were looking at her in confusion. "Sorry, was just taking a second to check on something about my Persona." Turning to Junpei with a grin, she nodded as they began walking. "So, Junpei, who _was _your Persona anyway?"

"...Hermes." Junpei's grin at Hamuko's face incredible.

"Oh no you ARE Sailor Mercury." Half whining, half laughing, Hamuko shook her head in amusement. Yukari rolled her eyes behind them as they kept moving about, on guard in case any more Shadows tried to blindside them. There didn't appear to be any others on the floor.

"_...This is almost disconcerting." _Mitsuru commented on a few moments later. _"Normally there's much more Shadows … Shinjiro, are you by the transporter for this floor at all?" _

"Unfortunately, no." Shinjiro shook his head at that, glancing around. "We're by the stairs though. Do we want to keep them on this floor, or move on up and hope we have some better luck?"

"_Just to the second floor. I'd rather have a floor with more Shadows than risk you four getting into something over your heads ..." _Mitsuru's decision came a moment later, and Shinjiro nodded towards the steps. Understanding the gesture, Hamuko lead the way up, faintly hearing something metallic a long ways off. It didn't seem to be close enough to give chase, and she wasn't sure if anyone else heard it.

It was gone when they reached the second floor. Relaxing a bit for no reason that she could see, Hamuko stepped off of the stairs, and was surprised to see a new Shadow skittering about on the floor, having not noticed them yet. "Well, there's one, at least." The strange red tint puzzled her, but perhaps if she got it from behind … Waiting for the others to arrive, Hamuko edged closer to it, hoping it wouldn't spot her.

It spotted Yukari instead.

Screeching at the sight of pink, it charged, and Hamuko swung at it out of reflex to at least stall it. The attack stopped it from barreling into the other girl, but it had managed to claw her leg.

"Ah!" Stumbling a bit, Yukari retreated a few steps as more Shadows came, having heard the screech. Soon there were several more heading their way, but for now, there were a few attacking them directly. Shinjiro swore and moved, putting himself in the doorway as a means of interception. Junpei didn't waste a moment and launched into an Attack, Hermes ramming into one of the attacking Shadows.

Turning to Yukari in the middle of parrying an attack, Hamuko nodded. "Take care of your leg before you help out in the fight, okay?" Yukari nodded, reaching down and pulling her Evoker from the holster. Her hands were shaking, but she seemed to be willing to push through nerves this time as the barrel went to her head. The blue fire started kicking up, and she swallowed.

"I … I can do this!"

Hamuko turned her head at the sound of the gunshot, and was relieved to see that Yukari had pulled it off this time. Floating above the brunet girl was a throne in the shape of an ox's head, a young woman with wavy hair chained to it with her arms crossed over her chest. As she appeared, a green light wrapped around Yukari, healing the scratch on her leg.

Sighing in relief, Hamuko looked at the Shadow in front of her. 'Okay Miriel, get ready!' She called to the angel mentally, drawing out the COMP.

_'You're serious about this?'_

'Hey, if you're gonna be my babysitter, you're gonna have to help me stay alive, alright?'

_'… Fair enough.' _Miriel's resigned sigh made Hamuko laugh mentally as she opened the COMP and hit the summon button. Instead of appearing in a flare of blue fire like Eurydice had, Miriel decided to make an appearance in a flurry of white feathers before an arrow of light shot through one of the attacking Shadows, catching it off guard.

"W-what the hell Luna-tan?!"

Hamuko sighed; she should have figured that would have happened. "I'll explain later Junpei!" Twirling her parasol a bit, she managed to gut another Shadow as a pair of wind pillars shot through the third shadow; one of them was a brilliant white while the other was pink and seemed to have cherry blossoms in it. Turning to Yukari, Hamuko spotted her Persona floating above her, summoning more of the pink twisters.

The Shadow Junpei and Hermes had been whaling on had disintegrated by that point, and the one that Yukari and Miriel were pelting with wind gusts was heading that way too. Focusing back on the one in front of her, Hamuko stowed the COMP back in her pocket and charged. The Shadow lunged to attack as well, only to be hit with the blades of Hamuko's parasol first. Not giving it a chance to recover, she kept slashing at it, watching it screech and flail backwards before one of Yukari's arrows hit it dead center in the mask, stunning it.

Seeing the opportunity, Hamuko brought the weapon down in an overhanded swing, cutting the Shadow in half. Letting out one last screech, it vanished, the red tint going with it. All three juniors sighed in relief, grinning at one another. Miriel had vanished at some point after her target was gone, and a faint chuckle of amusement in the space between her ears told Hamuko that the angel was fine.

Their relief vanished as the screeches of the other Shadows finally reached them. Turning, they blinked to see Shinjiro standing in between them and the mass of five – at least it looked like five – furious Shadows. "Heh, lookit the lot of you," The senior smirked, pulling on the chain in his blazer pocket as he spoke. "You fuckers thought you'd get away with free food, eh? Well, guess what?" A pocket watch slipped out at the end of the chain, and the senior grabbed it as a blue fire kicked up around him. "The hunter just became the hunted."

Shinjiro seemed to press a button on the watch, and the fire shattered with the sound of a clock going haywire. His Persona appeared above him a few seconds later, a man with long white hair in black armor on a jet black horse, a spear clenched in one hand.

"Castor? Get them."

The horse part of the Persona let out a screech, and the rider – Castor – brought the spear forward as the horse charged into the Shadows, who all seemed to realize something had gone wrong with their attack. The juniors stared as several slashes appeared across the Shadow's surfaces, all of them cut to ribbons in a matter of moments as they dissolved into the darkness around them. The knight seemed to look around for a few moments before vanishing as well, and Shinjiro turned back to the three with him as he spun the watch on the chain.

"W-what the hell?" Junpei's eyes were probably as wide as was humanly possible, and Hamuko didn't doubt her eyes were just as big. "D-dude, that – You just- I haven't seen overkill like that in ages!"

"Tch, they're low-level fodder." Catching the watch in the middle of the spin, Shinjiro shrugged. "If it had just been one or two of 'em, I'd have let you three still whale on them for experience, but five? No offense, but you three would have been in serious shit. Especially since one of the ones you guys took on was stupidly powerful for this floor. Props for that." Nodding at them all, the brunet male winced. "You all seem wiped as it is. We should probably head for the transporter now."

Hamuko nodded at that, resisting the urge to yawn. "I was wondering why the one Shadow was reddish instead of black. Guess we know now that it's a supercharged one instead of a regular one. Gonna have to be extra careful with those from now on." After the group got a healing from Yukari's Persona – who Hamuko found out was named Io – the pink-haired girl made a mental comment. 'Okay, line of attack in case we get into something over our heads. Throw Shinjiro-senpai at it.'

_'I'm certain he will be thrilled to hear that.' _Miriel's voice held a level of sarcasm Hamuko had only ever heard from her brother.

'Would you rather me throw you at them instead?' She shot back.

_'No, I would not appreciate that at all.' _

'Then until you come up with a better plan, it's going to be "throw Shinjiro-senpai at it".' Shaking her head, Hamuko sighed. "We should probably make a beeline for the transporter."

"_Yes, you should." _Mitsuru chimed in._ "That battle was cest magnifique, but the Dark Hour is coming to a close. It wouldn't bode well if you four were trapped in here until tomorrow night. Shinjiro? Stay with them directly, and don't have them split up tonight; if they're taken on separately in their state, things will not end well." _

"Gotcha, Mitsuru. Seeya when we get down there." Nodding, Shinjiro slipped into position behind the juniors as they started searching the floor for the transporter Mitsuru spoke of. Finding a chest full of yen and another one containing a bulletproof vest for some reason, the last Shadow of the evening stood between them and the Transporter. No longer feeling up for a fight, Hamuko and Junpei ran up and bludgeoned it into submission, Shinjiro and Yukari just watching them.

Mitsuru was waiting for them on the first floor, face turning relieved when she saw them all. "I'm sorry about all that; if the first floor had been more active, I would have insisted you all stay there. But when it gets that dead quiet, it doesn't bode well at all ..." Sighing, she gave them all a weak chuckle. "But truly, that was quite impressive." Turning to look at Akihiko as he jogged over, she chuckled. "They might just catch up to you in no time, Akihiko."

"Heh, that'll be something to see." Grinning, the silver-haired senior chuckled a bit at the way the juniors all seemed to slump. "You three are probably even more wiped than you let on; don't worry too much. Not only was that a tough fight, but you guys are still adjusting to being active in the Dark Hour. Your bodies will adjust soon."

"That's good; I'm dead on my feet." Yukari moaned, slumping onto her knees for a moment.

"Hehe, can't say I blame you Yuka-tan. I'm beat..." Junpei groaned as well, shaking his head. Hamuko nodded in agreement, leaning on her parasol to remain upright.

"It was a good first run; for the shit you guys got into, you pulled through fine." Shinjiro nodded behind them, helping Yukari stand up. "Hopefully all runs won't be like this, but at least you three have good instincts."

"And that is the highest compliment Shinjiro will ever pay anyone outside of 'you fight good'." Akihiko laughed at that. Mitsuru seemed to chuckle as well, and Shinjiro shook his head in amusement. Hamuko giggled with them when she heard the same crash from the night before, and time froze for a brief second.

_**Thou shalt have our blessings when creating Personae of the Fool Arcana …**_

'Awesome.' Straightening a bit more, Hamuko yawned. "Can we pack it in now? I'm ready to go home..."

"Fair enough." Mitsuru nodded, giving her an odd look. "... You'll have to explain about what happened tonight when that angel appeared; not just anyone can change Personae on a whim." Hamuko shivered from the ice in the female senior's eyes, but nodded in agreement. "It can wait until tomorrow; forcing an explanation out of you after all that is cruel."

It took all of the pink-haired girl's control to not sigh in relief as the group left Tartarus. They had managed to get out of the gate when time resumed, and the world shifted back to normal as suddenly as it had gone insane. Glancing up at the midnight blue sky as the group trudged home, Hamuko smiled a bit despite her sleepy state.

'Well, at the least, the year's gonna be interesting. Here's hoping I don't die from excitement.'

* * *

_**Personae**_

_**Tsukio Hamuko (Level Five)  
Eurydice (Fool): **_Resists Agi, nulls Hama, weak to Zio and Mudo. Skills include Bash, Agi  
**_Miriel (Justice): _**Nulls Hama, weak to Mudo. Skills include Hama, Holy arrow, Garu  
_**Pixie (Lovers): **_Resists Zio. Skills include Dia, Rakunda

_**Iori Junpei (Level Five)  
Hermes (Magician): **_Resists Agi, weak to Garu. Skills include Cleave, Agi, Re Patra

_**Takeba Yukari (Level Five)  
Io (Lovers): **_Resists Garu, weak to Zio. Skills include Dia, Patra, Garu

_**Aragaki Shinjiro (Level Twenty-two)  
Castor (Moon): **_Has no visible weaknesses or resistances. Skills include Bash, Dia, Garu, Blade of Fury, Devour* (deals phys damage and restores SP upon use)

_*Devour is a skill with origins in "Digital Devil Saga: Avatar Tuner". While in correct context, Devour was a Hunt technique used to gain bonus 'skill points' at the end of battle as it were, in Soul Survivor the purpose is as shown in the parenthesis. _

* * *

**_Starwing's Notes:_**_I ... think this is the longest chapter I've written in a long time. I do like how it turned out, even if it took a while due to various things (predominately writer's block and Pokemon). I really don't have much to cover in my notes from this chapter, apart from one thing; the seniors DO know of the Reaper, DO know that the floor being dead quiet usually means he's coming, and DO know not to fuck with him. How they know that will be explained later. _

_And yes the three were attacked by a Red Shadow, hence the jump to level five at the end of the chapter. _

_Now, two separate people have noticed the chapter title theme. They are indeed the names from various Touhou songs, because really, those songs have some of the best titles. Starting from here, I'll go ahead and say what song is being used and which game it comes from in case any of you are interested in looking them up on Youtube or something to listen to them. _

**_Chapter one:_**_ "Eternal Night Vignette~Eastern Night" - Menu theme for Touhou 8: Imperishable Night  
**Chapter two: **"Spring Lane~Colorful Path" Theme for Hakurei Reimu throughout various games, debuted in Touhou 9: Phantasmagoria of Flower View  
**Chapter three: **"Locked Girl~The Girl's Secret Room." Theme for Patchouli Knowledge throughout all of her in-game appearances, debuted in Touhou 6: Embodiment of Scarlet Devil.  
**Chapter four: **"Magus Night" One of Kirisame Marisa's many themes, predominately her bonus boss theme for Thouhou 12.8 "Great Fairy Wars"  
**Chapter five: **"At the End of Daylight" Stage two theme for Touhou 2: Story of Eastern Wonderland.  
**Chapter six: **"Apparitions stalk the night" Boss theme for Rumia, also from Touhou 6: Embodiment of Scarlet Devil.  
_

_Until next time, be seeing you!_


End file.
